Around 200 Viswema community members in Kohima joined a social work drive to clean and repair Vizol Road, aimed to maintain the road while paying tribute to the late statesman
DIMAPUR — Around 200 members of the Viswema community residing in Kohima participated in the first social work drive at Vizol Road in Kohima on Saturday.
The volunteers undertook road cleaning, repairing of potholes, and renovating of signboards along the stretch named after former Nagaland Chief Minister Vizol, according to an update.
The initiative, organised by the Viswema Union Kohima, aimed to maintain the road while paying tribute to the late statesman, who also served as a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha.
Speaking on the occasion, Vizol’s youngest daughter, Akhale Vizol Khamo, currently General Secretary of the Indian Red Cross Society, Nagaland State Branch (IRCSN), expressed gratitude to the Government of Nagaland for naming the road after her father and thanked the Viswema community for preserving his legacy through the social work initiative.
Khamo said the government’s decision to name the stretch from the South Police Station junction to Cathedral Junction as Vizol Road was a fitting tribute to her late father, whose life and public service left a lasting legacy. She recalled that her father was born in 1914, though he officially used 1916 as his birth year, and served the people until his passing on March 3, 2008.
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Describing him as a humble and selfless leader, Khamo said Vizol devoted himself to the welfare of the Naga people from a young age, travelling extensively, often on foot, while actively participating in the Naga political movement. She noted that he was a co-founder of the United Democratic Party, which later evolved into the Naga People’s Front (NPF).
She recounted that Vizol served as Chief Minister of Nagaland during 1974-76 and again from 1978 to 80 before representing the state in the Rajya Sabha.
During his tenure, she said, Nagaland experienced a period remembered as an "Island of Peace", reflecting his commitment to peace and harmony.
She also highlighted Vizol’s contribution as a founding member of the Indian Red Cross Society in Nagaland after serving during the Second World War, saying his lifelong commitment to humanitarian service continued even after his political career.
Viswema Union Kohima President Vithuzo Kikhi said this was the first time the union had conducted a social work programme specifically at Vizol Road, although similar community service activities had been organised elsewhere in the past.
Kikhi added that while it marked the beginning of the initiative, the union would undertake similar drives again whenever necessary to maintain the road.
He said the programme was attended primarily by Viswema residents of Kohima, including members from the New Minister’s Hill Panchayat, without involving government officials.
The Viswema Union Kohima also thanked Vikehel Kechu for his contribution.