'Mo jeebana pacche narke padithau...': Droupadi Murmu evokes legendary Odia poet in first speech as President

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Droupadi Murmu news: During her oath-taking as the 15th President of India, Droupadi Murmu evoked lines by legendary Odia poet, saint and philosopher Bhima Bhoi. She said, "Mo jeebana pacche narke padithau...jagata uddhara hau (witnessing the plethora of plights on earth how one could bear with; let the world get redeemed at my cost)." Chief Justice of India NV Ramana administered the oath to her in the Central Hall of Parliament today. 

Bhima Bhoi was a saint, poet and philosopher from the state of Odisha in India. Bhima Bhoi was a bhakta of Mahima Swamy. From Mahima Swamy, Bhima Bhoi would receive initiation into Mahima Dharma, an Indian religious tradition that challenged the authority of caste Hinduism on its own terms.

Soon after her oath-taking, Murmu posted the first tweet, from the 'President of India' Twitter handle, that read, "With the spirit of world welfare, I will always be ready to work with full devotion and dedication to live up to the trust of all of you."

Here are some other memorable quotes by India's first tribal woman President:

1. "I have been elected during an important time when the country is marking 75 years of Independence"
2. "Reaching this office is not my personal achievement but that of all the poor people in the country"
3. "My election is proof of the fact that in India, the poor can dream and also fulfil those dreams"
4. "It is the power of India's democracy that a girl born in a poor tribal home could reach the topmost constitutional post"
5. "We will have to speed up our efforts to meet the expectations that our freedom fighters had with the citizens of independent India"
6. "It is satisfying to me that the people who were devoid of development for years -the poor, Dalits, backward, the tribals- can see me as their reflection."

Ahead of the oath ceremony, Murmu visited the memorial of Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat, and paid her respects to the Father of the Nation. She then met outgoing President Ram Nath Kovind and first lady Savita Kovind.

On July 22, the NDA's presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu was officially declared as the 15th President of the country after the conclusion of the counting of votes.