DIMAPUR — Preparations for the burial of Naga ancestral remains being repatriated from the Pitt Rivers Museum at the University of Oxford have begun at Naga Solidarity Park in Kohima, with the park's management committee formally allocating a site for the purpose.

A short prayer service was held at the park on Saturday morning to mark the commencement of preparatory work, following which site clearance and ground preparation began, according to a statement issued by the Naga Solidarity Park Management Committee.

The site was allocated after requests from the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR) and Naga tribal hohos during meetings with the committee on October 19 and 30, seeking a suitable burial site within the park. The committee stated that it had held consultations with stakeholders concerned before formally designating the site.

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The proposed burial at the park is being envisaged by the committee as more than an arrangement for the return of ancestral remains. It stated that the initiative was intended to provide an opportunity for healing and reconciliation, and strengthen a shared sense of Naga identity beyond tribal divisions.

The prayer service was attended by representatives of the Angami Public Organisation, Kohima Village Council, Angami Students' Union, Kohima Village Students' Union, Northern Angami Students' Union, Naga Peoples' Movement for Human Rights, Naga Students' Federation and the FNR's Local Arrangement Committee.

The committee stated that the participation of the organisations reflected a shared responsibility towards the undertaking. It maintained that Naga Solidarity Park belonged, in spirit and purpose, to the Naga people and expressed hope that the burial would serve as a bridge towards reconciliation and a renewed sense of collective belonging.