Bhubaneswar: The State Level World Soil Day Celebration – 2025 was held on 5th December 2025 at the Auditorium, Krushi Bhavan, Bhubaneswar. The event was organized to mark the global observance of World Soil Day, with this year’s theme “Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities.” The theme highlighted how soil health plays a key role in ensuring food security, environmental balance, clean air, clean water, and better living standards in expanding urban spaces.
Deputy Chief Minister, Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment, and Energy, Odisha, Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo in his keynote address, urged farmers, scientists, and other stakeholders to adopt sustainable practices like reduced use of chemical inputs, promotion of organic matter, and wider adoption of natural and climate-resilient farming techniques to protect soil fertility for future generations.
The Principal Secretary to Government, Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment, Odisha Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee highlighted the Government’s efforts to bridge knowledge gaps and strengthen soil testing facilities across the state. The Director of Agriculture & Food Production, Odisha Shubham Saxena delivered the welcome address, highlighting the importance of the theme.
A video on World Soil Day 2025 was screened, followed by the inauguration of the Manual on Agricultural Production Technology – Rabi 2025-26. Soil Health Cards were distributed to farmers to promote scientific soil nutrient management by Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister Shri Singh Deo and exhibition stalls inaugurated.
In the Technical Session, experts spoke on sustainable soil management, natural farming, city compost usage, urban gardening, and Soil Health Card recommendations. Progressive farmers shared their experiences on maintaining soil health at field level.
The event ended with concluding remarks and vote of thanks, by Director Soil Conservation & Watershed Development Subrat Kumar Panda, acknowledging the efforts of all participants. The celebration successfully spread the message that soil is a living resource and protecting it is essential to ensure healthy food, healthy people, and healthy cities.
