Jharsuguda’s Apada Mitra Volunteer Khusboo Jaipuria Invited to Rashtrapati Bhavan ‘At Home’ Reception on Republic Day 2026
Jharsuguda : A 23-year-old disaster management volunteer from Jharsuguda district of Odisha, Khushboo Jaipuria, has received an official invitation from Rashtrapati Bhavan to attend the prestigious ‘At Home’ Reception on the occasion of Republic Day.
Khushboo, an Apda Mitra volunteer, is currently pursuing First Year M.Sc. (Botany Honours) at Government Women’s College, Sambalpur. She is the daughter of Budhram Jaipuria, an employee of TRL Krosaki Refractories Ltd, and Sanjulata Jaipuria, a homemaker, and hails from Belpahar in Jharsuguda district.
The invitation, delivered through the Postal Department, recognises her dedicated contribution to disaster preparedness and emergency response at the grassroots level. Trained under the Apda Mitra programme, Khushboo has been actively involved in community-based disaster management initiatives.
Khushboo Jaipuria said, “First of all, I would like to thank everyone, especially our President Droupadi Murmu ji, our Hon’ble Prime Minister, and all the higher authorities for this opportunity from Rashtrapati Bhawan. I am also grateful to OSDMA and NDMA for organising such impactful initiatives together. I am truly thankful and happy to have received this opportunity, and I do not want to miss it.
Our journey began in the year 2023 at Patrapali, under the Jharsuguda district, where we underwent a 12-day residential training programme. During this training, we received thorough instruction in handling adverse situations, performing CPR techniques, and managing both man-made and natural disasters. The disaster management course covered all these aspects in detail.
After completing the training, we visited different schools and trained NCC cadets and Scouts. On January 26, 2025 (Republic Day), we demonstrated our skills in Jharsuguda, where our team won first prize.
Subsequently, a Training of Trainers (ToT) programme was held at the state level in Bhubaneswar, where I and my team member, Nilamani Rohidas was provided a Master Training course. I was awarded the second prize based on the ranking and based on the performance. I got selected. And I was recognised as a grade A Apda Mitra Volunteer in that training.
