Society / Assam

GUWAHATI, Jan 18? The fourth ?Navabarsha Mahotsav? (New Year Festival) organised by the Srimanta Sankaradev Kalashetra Samaj at the Kalakshetra concluded on January 17, with a tribute-paying ceremony to Rupkonwar Jyotiprasad Agarwala on his 52nd death anniversary, being celebrated as Silpi Divas all over the State.A major highlight of the festival were the cultural evenings on the first and the second day featuring luminaries from the States? musical world who mesmerised the audience with some evergreen melodies of yesteryears. Conducted by renowned music director Ramen Baruah, a host of...

DIGBOI, Jan 19 ? On the second day of Dehing-Patkai festival, the adventurous parasailing was held in Ledo airstrip of World War II, which was inaugurated by the Minister of State, (Ind) for Forest Prodyut Bordoloi. A colourful elephant procession with about 30 decorated elephants was taken out from the Borgolai sports complex escorted by forest guards which terminated at the Dehing Patkai festival ground. The procession was flagged off by S Doley, CCF, Wildlife, Assam.

On the otherhand, a silent procession started from Patkai stadium, by the NE Coal Mines Officers? Association, including the...

JAGIROAD, Jan 18 ? The historical Jon Beel Mela at Jon Beel, five kilometres from Jagiroad town, got under way on Thursday with a three-day programme. The mela began with the feast offerred by Gova king Deep Singh Deoraja on the beach of Jon Beel.

It is pertinent to mention that the hill tribes surrounding the area come to that place and exchange their agri products with the food items from the plain tribes. That is, the ancient bartar system is still prevailing there till today. For this annual events, hundreds of tribesmen from Karbi Hill and Khasi and Jayantia Hills of Meghalaya reach here...

BISWANATH CHARIALI, Jan 19 ? A very startling fact has come to light recently. There was sale and purchase of human beings in public in the 19th century Assam. According to the documents found recently in Biswanath, sale and purchase of women in Biswanath was not a too uncommon feature towards the last phase of Ahom rule.

Dr Nityananda Gogoi, noted scholar and historian, who decoded the four ancient documents belonging to the first quarter of the 19th century, told The Assam Tribune that the fact of auctioning women unraveled by the four Sanchi documents may also throw new light on the socio...

GUWAHATI, Jan 18 ? Over 31,000 of the State?s children who have never been to schools, have been brought to the mainstream LP schools, while a new initiative to bring the rest of the out-of-school kids to the mainstream schools is slated to start from February 10 next. A Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) survey has put the number of the State?s out-of-school children, between six and fourteen years of age, to be around 14.5 lakh.

According to SSA sources, the children already enrolled in the LP schools were provided with a brief course of training under the bridge course of the District Primary...

HAFLONG, Jan 17 ? The Nulding Kut Festival of Renewal of Life was celebrated here at Fiangpui play ground, Haflong on January 11 2003 with great enthusiasm. The festival was organised by the Nul-Ding Kut Celebration Committee, 2003. Nul-ding Kut is one of the many festivals of the Biate tribe, and has been celebrated since time immemorial. The importance and the significance of the festival regarded as the ?festival of renewal of life? and it is the most revered festival being celebrated by the Biate community every year.

In the old days, their ancestors used to celebrate this festival during...

GUWAHATI, Jan 17? Of the State?s 54,16,601 children in the age group of six to fourteen years, 14,49,088 are out of school. Of them, 7,47,908 are boys and 7,01,180 are girls. In all, 2,74,460 children are found to be dropouts in this age group, and 1,48,283 of them are boys, while 1,26,178 are girls. A total number of 11,74,628 children in this age group, in the State, have been found to have never enrolled themselves in schools. While 5,99,626 of them are boys 5,75,003 are girls. The State has 28,38,870 boys and 25,77,731 girls in the age group of six to fourteen years. The future of the...

Jorhat, Jan. 16: A landmark signature campaign is under way in rural areas along the Brahmaputra in Jorhat and Sivasagar districts to create awareness to conserve birds in the region. A charter containing suggestions for protection of birds with one lakh signatures will be presented to chief minister Tarun Gogoi at the inaugural function of first-ever bird festival in Assam. The four-day event will begin on January 19 in Jorhat and Sivasagar simultaneously.

The festival has been organised by the Action for Greener Earth to generate awareness among the people to preserve the avian heritage on...

GUWAHATI, Jan 16 ? Heavy crowds continued to throng the Brahmaputra Beach Festival on its last day today. An estimated 40,000 people today visited Andheri Dhuli a 2.5 km stretch of silvery sand in the midst of the mighty Brahmaputra, the venue of the four-day-long festival organised by the Assam Boat Racing and Rowing Association. Besides the regular events like para-sailing, horse-rides, craft bazar, North-east food festival, fireworks display etc. today?s attractions included traditional boat race, ?nao-khel geet? Bihu and Karbi dance.

And as the befitting finals to the festival, signing...

DOOM DOOMA, Jan 16 ? President APJ Abdul Kalam exhorted people to live in peace and harmony while inaugurating the Dihing-Patkai festival, 2003 at Lekhapani about 21 kilomater off Margherita today. President Kalam who arrived at Nadua Army Airport by a special Air Force plane yesterday afternoon to come to Lekhapani this morning and visited the Lalpaher and Longtong tribal villages near the venue and took stock of various ongoing development projects there.

The President also inaugurated the ?Siu-Ka-Pha harmony arch? erected near the venue site on National Highway No 153 from Lekhapani to...