IT News
Imphal, Jan 24:
The 27th General Conference cum Cultural, Literary and Sports Meet 2023 of the Tangkhul Naga Valley Students’ Association (TNVSA) is underway at Muirei village in Manipur’s Ukhrul district.
The event, which kicked off on January 17, will culminate on January 26. Altogether 30 villages participated in the 10-daylong general conference being organised under the theme ‘Victory in Solidarity’.
Education, Law and Legislative Affairs minister Th Basanta Kumar Singh graced the occasion as the chief guest.
Taking part in the tree plantation drive as part of the cultural event, Th Basanta Kumar Singh lauded the organisers and appealed to them and the locals to nurture the trees being planted.
Stressing the need to put concerted efforts in the fight against the drug menace, he said, “We need to join hands as a society and fight unitedly against drug abuse to save our younger generations. We have lost 2 to 3 generations due to drug menace in the state.”
“Let’s take the fight against drugs to a different level as our chief minister’s main focus is a drug-free state,” he said. He further stated that Manipur is not only the transit route for illegal drugs but has become a drug manufacturing state as people are involved in poppy cultivation.
He said more trees need to be planted as the state is facing water scarcity mainly due to deforestation both in the hills and valleys. He further added such cultural, literary and sports events are crucial for the development of society.
“Such cultural, literacy and sports meets provide an opportunity for the villagers to unite,” he added.
He also said the state government has already started a two-month course for those willing to study and learn the dialects and languages of seven different communities with a stipend of Rs 10,000. The programme aims to safeguard the indigenous communities of the state. The seven languages under the ethnic language training programme include Anal, Paite, Rongmei, Tangkhul, Poumai, Thadou and Meiteilon, he said.
During the event, various units and villages participated in folk songs and dance competitions. A painting competition on the theme ‘Global Warming’ was also organised as part of the event.
