Zeliangrong community of Manipur celebrates Gaan Ngai

Our Correspondent

Imphal, Jan. 16 (EMN): Gaan Ngai, the biggest post-harvest festival of the Zeliangrong tribes of Assam, Manipur and Nagaland, got underway in the Zeliangrong-dominated areas of Manipur and the Northeast region on Sunday.

The inauguration of the festival in Manipur, heralding the arrival of the New Year, was marked by an invocation to god, congregational prayers and dance performances.

Speaking on the occasion, Union minister RK Ranjan said that the Zeliangrong community will be able to safeguard its identity if the community fully understands the meaning of the celebration of the festival.

According to the spokesperson of the state-level Gaan Ngai celebration committee, the festival revives the tradition, customs and culture of the Zeliangrong community in the minds of the young generation. It is a religious festival which holds an important place in the Zeliangrong community and there is a need for the youth to understand the importance of the festival, he said.

On the eve of Gaan Ngai, the state Governor La Ganesan and Chief Minister N Biren Singh also greeted the people of Manipur.

In a message, especially to the Zeliangrong brethren, the Governor said ‘Gaan Ngai’ is the festival of winter season for paying obeisance and homage to those departed souls who left this temporal world in the year before. In his message, Chief Minister N Biren Singh said ‘Gaan Ngai’ is the biggest cultural and religious post-harvest festival of the Zeliangrong community.

Meanwhile, Manipur Legislative Assembly Speaker, Y Khemchand also extended wishes for ‘Gaan Ngai.’ It may be mentioned that the festival was declared a restricted holiday in 1976 and it was upgraded to a public holiday on January 10, 1998.