TNI Bureau: The Odia Wikimedians User Group, in collaboration with the Wikipedia Asian Month User Group, successfully organized a meetup and offline edit-a-thon in Puri town on Saturday. The event focused on capacity building, community bonding, and expanding Asian content on Odia Wikipedia as part of the ongoing Wikipedia Asian Month 2025 edit-a-thon.
The program was coordinated by Odia Wikimedian Sangram Keshari Senapati, with on-ground support from fellow Wikimedian Aliva Sahoo. Experienced editor Chinmayee Mishra joined as a trainer, offering guidance on Wikipedia policies, editing techniques, and content creation workflows.
Six new trainees — Abhishek Srichandan, Tanmaya Kumar Nayak, Kiran Kumar Bharati, Sonali Barik, Omm Biswajit Pradhan, and Subham — participated in the edit-a-thon with the goal of learning how to contribute effectively to Odia Wikipedia. Community members including Chirashree Chinmayee Chaine, Dinesh, and Dibyadarsi Nayak were also present, contributing to discussions and mentoring participants throughout the session.
Abhishek Srichandan shared a heartfelt personal story during the event. He recalled how, during his school days, he frequently visited cyber cafés to download information about eminent personalities of Odisha for his academic projects. He expressed his surprise and joy at now being able to contribute to the very platform that once served as a valuable resource in his childhood. Abhishek described the experience as both meaningful and motivating, expressing his happiness at learning new things about Wikipedia.
About Wikipedia Asian Month
Wikipedia Asian Month (WAM) is an annual, international Wikipedia campaign aimed at promoting and celebrating Asian content across various language Wikipedias. Launched in 2015, the campaign encourages local communities to organize month-long edit-a-thons every November, focusing on creating or improving articles related to Asia around a particular theme. Participation is open to all global communities, not just those based in Asia.
Since its inception, WAM has grown significantly in scale and diversity. Each year, thousands of new articles are created, with more Wikipedians from around the world contributing to improved cross-cultural understanding.
Odia Wikipedia’s Active Participation
Odia Wikipedia has been an enthusiastic part of Wikipedia Asian Month since its inception. Over the years, the Odia Wikimedian community has consistently contributed by creating quality content, organizing events, and engaging new editors to highlight Asia’s cultural, historical, and contemporary significance in the Odia language.
Community Growing Stronger
The 2025 Puri meetup reflects the community’s sustained commitment to outreach and collaboration. By conducting offline edit-a-thons, meetups, and hands-on training workshops, Odia Wikimedians continue to strengthen digital knowledge representation in Odia and empower new contributors to join the global Wikimedia movement.
The Odia Wikimedians User Group expressed gratitude to the Wikipedia Asian Month User Group for their continuous support. Special thanks were extended to Santhosh Notagar, the WAM South Asia Ambassador, for his guidance and encouragement in making this meetup and edit-a-thon a success.