Hornbill Festival: Tourism department gearing up for grand celebration

KOHIMA — Full-fledged preparations are underway for the eagerly anticipated Hornbill Festival 2023 at the Naga Heritage Village, Kisama.

The tourism department is actively engaged in enhancing the main venue and working to patch things up, according to Veyielo Doulo, additional director of the state tourism department.

Doulo told Eastern Mirror on Thursday that the engineering wing and departmental officials are working in full swing at Kisama.

Curtain Raiser from Nov. 24

According to Doulo, a curtain raiser event will be held from November 24 to the 25th in the form of a food and music festival at Kisama. Visitors can indulge in a delightful array of food offerings throughout the day, accompanied by evening musical entertainment.

Additionally, the tourism department has collaborated with the Task Force for Music and Fine Arts (TaFMA) to produce an instrumental music piece by the talented guitarist Imnainla Jamir. This initiative aims to promote tourism in the state, offering a unique and engaging experience for festival attendees, he said.

It was conveyed that the chief guest for the main festival inauguration is yet to be finalised. However, there is anticipation that the Union Minister of Tourism will attend the event, awaiting confirmation, with several dignitaries and embassy officials expected to attend the subsequent days.

Adding to the listeners’ delight, bands from five countries have reportedly confirmed their participation and a Bollywood celebrity is expected to make an appearance during the festival. The International Hornbill Naga Wrestling Championship is slated to move to Chiechama and will take place on December 2, Doulo said.

The official also revealed that there will be an exhibition featuring the Mithun, the state animal of Nagaland, and ‘Tenyi Vo’/’Votho,’ a native breed of pig from rural Nagaland. The ‘Amazing NAMASTE’ (Nagaland, Assam, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Tripura), an all-India bikers tour, is anticipated to be a noteworthy event, he said.

Extended events of the Hornbill Festival in locations like Khezhakeno, Zunheboto, Doyang, and Peren will be held simultaneously, complemented by night carnivals at High School Junction, Main Town, BOC, and Kohima Cathedral areas in Kohima.

Doulo shared that the Department of Agriculture and Horticulture is actively preparing its allocated areas. Additionally, the first parking lot has been expanded to accommodate more cars.

He said that state Minister for Tourism, Temjen Imna Along has visited multiple times to oversee the preparations while Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio is also expected to visit the sites starting next week.

Various tribes are also renovating their Morungs in preparation for the festival, he added.

Participation of eastern tribes still uncertain

Notably, in 2022, the eastern tribes of Nagaland, comprising Chang, Khiamniungan, Konyak, Phom, Sangtam, Tikhir, and Yimkhiung, opted out of participating in the Hornbill Festival. This decision was speculated once more earlier this year.

However, discussions on whether to participate or maintain the abstention remain inconclusive, despite reports that the decision to abstain from participation was reaffirmed under the banner of the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation (ENPO).

Sources said that the Eastern Nagaland Legislators Union and the Eastern Nagaland Gazetted Officers Association are likely to convene a meeting with the ENPO and its affiliated organisations in the coming days to reach a consensus.

Against this backdrop, elected representatives (MLAs) from the Konyak tribe visited the Morung at Kisama on Thursday morning. The outcome of their visit and any decision regarding the abstention of the apex tribal bodies from Eastern Nagaland remains uncertain at the time of filing this report. However, it is expected that a decision in this regard will be reached after the upcoming meeting.

Also read: Kenye urges ENPO to participate in Hornbill festival