‘Taro Festival’ celebrates Pongo village’s local produce

DIMAPUR — The culmination of the two-day ‘Taro Festival’ was held at Pongo village in Longleng district on Saturday, with District Agricultural Officer (DAO) Maongsangla as the special guest.

In her address, the DAO congratulated the organising committee and the people of Pongo village and stated that the first of a kind festival in Longleng district was a success, a DIPR report stated.

Maongsangla encouraged farmers to boost taro productivity and expand cultivation for higher yields. She also urged educated unemployed youths to start marketing initiatives, supplying the produce to various parts of the state and beyond.

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She added that value addition products can be incorporated from taro, as it's a climate-resilient crop, favourable in their region, with vast scope for higher production and income generation for farmers. She concluded by informing that Pongo village would serve as a centre where the Agriculture and allied departments would collaborate to support farmers' activities in the district.

The programme concluded with a technical session, where a senior scientist from KVK- ICAR, Longleng, imparted knowledge to farmers on scientific farming practices.

The festival aims to celebrate and preserve Pongo village's rich taro heritage while promoting sustainable agriculture, value addition and market linkages for farmers.

The festival aims to enhance farmer livelihoods, raise awareness about taro's cultural, nutritional, and economic significance, and encourage youth participation in agricultural entrepreneurship. It also seeks to position Pongo Doong (taro) as a unique regional brand at state and national levels.

Pongo village, located just 8 km away from Longleng district headquarters, is widely renowned for producing the finest quality of taro (Colocasia esculenta) in Nagaland.

Popularly known as ‘Pongo Doong,’ a pride of Pongo village, this distinctive variety is highly sought after not only within the district but also in the neighbouring districts.

Pongo Doong is celebrated for its unique flavour, rich texture and remarkable shelf life, qualities attributed to the village's favourable soil composition and climatic conditions.

Since time immemorial, taro has remained an integral part of Phom cuisine and food culture, symbolising tradition, sustenance and heritage, the report stated.

Earlier, village council chairman of Hongnyu village, YL Ongba delivered the welcome address followed by an invocation by associate pastor of Pongo Baptist Church, Metlu. The programme was chaired by T Amen and Nanglang Y Phom.