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Tug-of-war contest in progress during the Tsungremong-cum-Mini Hornbill Festival in Mokokchung town on Thursday.[/caption]
Our Correspondent
Mokokchung, Aug. 1 (EMN): Minister for Housing and Mechanical Tongpang Ozukum on Thursday warned that if solution to the Indo-Naga talks were to arrive in the absence of unity among the Naga people, it would rather turn out to be a catastrophe instead of a blessing for the Nagas.
Ozukum was speaking at the Tsungremong-cum-Mini Hornbill festival at Imkongmeren Sports Complex in Mokokchung town.
According to him, a settlement to the Naga political issue was most crucial for the Naga people. The minister hoped that an honourable settlement would arrive at the earliest.
“But if the landing ground is not stable, it would create a disastrous situation among the Naga families,” he cautioned. In this connection, Ozukum appealed to the Naga people to be united.
The minister, who is also a former president of NSF, said that ILP was another major issue in Nagaland; and the state government is equally concerned about it, as evidenced by the decision to extend the regulations to Dimapur district as well.
He informed that the Abhishek Singh Committee formed by the state government to frame modalities for the implementation of ILP has submitted its recommendations.
Ozukum said that the government has approved the recommendations and the new ILP policies will be implemented at the earliest.
He further appealed to the people of Nagaland to support and cooperate with the government during the implementation of ILP across the state.
Portraying Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio as a visionary leader, the minister said under Rio’s leadership Nagaland Vision Document (a 5-year plan) has been adopted, and the government has been executing the plans one after the other accordingly.
Ozukum also shared that to transform Nagaland from a consumer-state into a self-sufficient and self-reliant state, the PDA government has declared the Nagaland Startup Policy aimed at accelerating and promoting local entrepreneurs in the state.
“The aim is to create at least 500 Startups in the next five years and establish ‘Made in Nagaland’ products and services; I, therefore, appeal to the people of Nagaland to support the plans and policies initiated by the government,” he said.
The minister also expressed concern over climate change, with prime emphasis on plastic pollution. He said that the government has declared that Nagaland would be ‘plastic-free’, and as notified by the government, steps have been taken in all the corners of the state.
Ozukum also announced that Mokokchung district would be declared as a ‘plastic-free district’ on October 2. Towards this, he appealed to the citizens of the district to take up the responsibility of achieving the ‘plastic-free district’ status.
The minister said that in order to promote youth in sport, the state government has installed astroturf pitch, floodlights and synthetic track at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Kohima.
He further informed that the Under-15 girl’s football team from Nagaland had participated at the Gothia Cup representing India in the world’s largest youth tournament in Sweden and expressed hope that Naga youth will continue to participate in international events as envisioned by the state government.
Ozukum said that to aid the students in academic field, the government has launched the Chief Minister’s Meritorious Students Fellowship (CMMSF) to extend fellowships to toppers of NBSE for five years. The fellowship programme is being implemented from this year onwards.
He also told the gathering that the state government had launched the Mini Hornbill Festival not for enjoyment and merry-making but with the purpose of celebrating the Mini Hornbill Festival coinciding with tribal festivals in Nagaland.
The minister asserted that the objectives of the Mini Hornbill Festival are to foster and strengthen unity among the Naga tribes and let the world know about the various tribal festivals celebrated among the tribes of Nagaland; promote and provide a platform to the entrepreneurs, SHGs and individuals to showcase their products.
He also informed that Mini Hornbill Festival has completed one year cycle and has received reports of success from all the tribes of Nagaland and the government plans to broaden the scope to celebrate the festival in more elaborate manner.
Saying that the celebration should bear successful fruits, the minister also urged the district administration to identify hardworking and successful entrepreneurs, SHGs and individuals during the three-day celebration so that ways and means to provide assistance to them could be discussed during the DPDB meeting.
Earlier in the day, Ozukum declared the festival open amid a spectacular showcase of rich Ao culture, tradition and indigenous games.
Day-1 of the festival was marked by tug-of-war contests among various wards of Mokokchung town, followed by indigenous games.
After declaring the festival open, Ozukum visited the Agri & Allied exhibition and food courts and various stalls at the venue.
