Rourkela: Western Odisha is set to celebrate its biggest agrarian festival, Nuakhai — the festival that remains at the heart of the region’s cultural identity — on Tuesday. Bumper rainfall and expectations of a good harvest have added to this year’s celebrations of the festival, which symbolises gratitude to nature, community bonding and sharing of the season’s first produce.On Monday evening, households across Sambalpur, Bargarh, Balangir, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Kalahandi, Nuapada and Subarnapur will perform traditional rituals to invite their presiding deities ahead of the ceremonial offering of the newly harvested grain, or ‘nua’, on Tuesday.Chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi extended greetings to the people through a video message, describing Nuakhai as “an expression of love for our soil, culture, lifestyle and social unity”.The festival has triggered a massive homecoming, with people travelling from workplaces in different parts of Odisha and outside the state to celebrate with their families. “I have come from Bhubaneswar to Sambalpur with my family to celebrate Nuakhai with my father, brothers and relatives,” said P K Purohit.Markets across western Odisha witnessed heavy crowds over the weekend as people shopped for clothes, earthen pots, traditional food items and offerings required for the festival.In Sundargarh district, preparations are in full swing for the much-discussed collective Nuakhai celebrations at Jhurimal village, which has been observing the tradition for the past 14 years. All 163 families of the village, irrespective of caste, religion or social status, celebrate the festival together.The celebrations begin with the offering of new rice to Sankatmochan Bajrangbali, followed by rituals for family deities and ancestors. One of Jhurimal’s distinctive traditions is that women are given the honour of partaking of the Nuakhai meal first. Villagers then sit together and share traditional dishes. Cultural performances form a key part of the festivities. “Collective Nuakhai is also the celebration of unity, equality, brotherhood and togetherness,” said Digambar Upadhyay, founder of the initiative.Inspired by Jhurimal’s model, Balangibahal and Nuamunda villages in Tangarpali block have also begun celebrating Nuakhai collectively in recent years.The festive bustle is equally visible in Nuapada district. Villagers have been cleaning and decorating their homes while gathering ritual materials from nearby forests ahead of the celebrations.In neighbouring Balangir district, around 1,000 families comprising nearly 5,000 people from Dahimal and Jalia villages under Belpada block will once again celebrate Nuakhai collectively, continuing a tradition of the past eight years.