According to the office-bearers of Surat Odiya Pravasi Samaj, all 13 BJD MLAs from Ganjam, Loksabha MPs and Tourism Minister Ashok Panda will also be a part of celebrations, where several Ollywood starts are slated to perform. Around two lakh Odiyas are expected to attend the event.
It is worthwhile to mention here that Patnaik had also recently written letters to Union Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal requesting them to consider and convince private airline companies to provide direct flights between Bhubaneswar and Surat and introduce two daily trains between Behrampur and the city.
Around seven lakh migrants from Odisha are living in Surat. Most of them are employed in the textile sector and industries of Hazira.
Prasanta Patnaik