Students clean main venue of Nagaland’s famous Hornbill Festival

KISAMA— Students from various schools on Monday observed the World Environment Day by cleaning the Naga Heritage Village at Kisama, which is one of the most-visited places in Nagaland and the main venue of the annual Hornbill Festival.

The participants collected litter and uprooted the shrubs during the cleanliness and tree plantation drive organised by the Angami Youth Organisation (AYO) and Angami Students’ Union in collaboration with the School Education department.

AYO President Kesosul Christopher Ltu said they chose Kisama for the cleanliness drive as visitors litter the place.

‘Whenever people come, they tend to come with so much stuff but leave dirt and waste here. We want to send the message that, you must come and enjoy the beautiful place but also do not litter the place; dispose of your waste at the right place and in the proper bins,’ he said.

Students from various educational institutions including government and private schools in Kigwema and Phesama villages, as well as representatives from SCERT, Samagra Shiksha, School Education, and NBSE, participated in the event. 

Informing that the initiative was part of the “cleaner and greener Kohima”, Christopher said more such drives would be conducted in the future and also urged the students to inculcate the good habits of cleanliness.

Advisor of School Education and SCERT, Kekhrielhoulie Yhome, said that everyone should love their own locality and care for the world. Climate Change is real and the world is heading for doomsday if measures are not taken today, he added.

There are about 2.5 lakh students in private schools and over one lakh in government schools in Nagaland. The amount of trash generated by these lakhs of students from the sweets they buy on a daily basis is huge, he said while urging students not to litter.

Mathematics teacher at Government Middle School, Phesama, Watikokba Longkumer, who took part in the cleanliness drive along with students, viewed that regular cleanliness drive should be carried out at Kisama throughout the year.

Lamenting trash being littered both inside and outside Kisama, he requested the visitors to pick up the waste before leaving the place.

Chuphen, a student of Japfu Christian College, said it is important to keep places like Kisama clean people from various parts of the world visit it. To have visitors witness the place in dirt won’t be a good impression, she added.

Also read: Jakhama becomes Nagaland’s first sustainable village

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