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SHILLONG, December 12
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he local MLA of and Minister, Arts and Culture, Government of Meghalaya, Deborah Marak on Friday said that for tourism to make an impact, the region needs peace and that the people need to strive for this peace.
Marak was speaking as the chief guest of a function to commemorate the 142nd death anniversary of Togan Nengminza Sangma at the memorial site at picturesque, Chisibibra in East Garo Hills (EGH) which was also attended by the Director of the department of Arts and Culture, Government of Meghalay, MW Nongbri as its guest of honour and local MDC, DT Sangma besides a host of other dignitaries, NGO leaders and residents of the area. The event was organized by the Pa Togan Sangma Memorial Association (PTSMA) involving NGOs of the region along with the residents.
“The site of Togan, who was born in nearby Samanda, is now a tourist as well as a heritage site which is being promoted for tourism within the state. We need to promote tourism within the region as it has the potential to change our lives. For tourism to make an impact our region needs peace and we have to strive for peace,” said Deborah Marak while adding, “The thoughts have to be positive for us to make any difference.”Speaking about the supreme sacrifice of those who laid down their lives to protect their motherland from the British, MW Nongbri said, “Their contributions will remain an inspiration as they showed the way to fight for the people of the region. While earlier the fight was against foreign forces, currently the fight is internal. The beauty of Garo Hills is breathtaking and with peace so much can be achieved. We pray that things will only get better with time.”
For the first time ever the remembrance was a two day event with traditional games being a part of the first day on Thursday. The town of Williamnagar was also thoroughly entertained by 7 different rock bands. “This was done with the aim to promote local talent within our region which is bustling with musical talent wanting an outlet to showcase their talent,” said the PTSMA secretary, Taison D Shira.
The event started with a traditional welcome to the guests, who were escorted to the memorial site by a group of traditional dancers. After a minute’s silence, a 5 gun salute was given in remembrance of the fallen hero, who died fighting foreign forces, 142 years ago.
The crowd gathered was reminded of the heroics of Pa Togan and his group who took on the might of the British in the face of certain defeat to protect their motherland.
“There is so much to learn from the sacrifices made by our forefathers. Pa Togan was a hero in the true sense and his bravery should inspire us to achieve so much within our region. Young people need to take this bravery to better themselves,” said the Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC), EGH, PR Marak.
The message of peace was repeated by local MDC, DT Sangma as well who asked the crowd to fight for better things through hard work and dedication.
“Ask not what your country can do for you but ask what you can do for your country. I believe if Togan was alive today he would not have asked people to collect money to celebrate his name but to work on bettering our own condition,” said Garo Students’ Union president, Tengsak G Momin, coining JF Kennedy’s historical words.
The event ended with a distribution of prizes to the winners of the traditional games.
