[ Prafulla Kaman ]
JONAI, 7 Sep: The Adi-Mising Bane Kebang (AMBK), a joint committee comprising members from Assam and Arunachal, on Tuesday hosted Solung festival at Sirampuriya village here in Dhemaji district of Assam with colourful programmes.
Solung is usually celebrated within the first week of September every year. However, the special festive event was celebrated by the community to showcase their rich traditional culture before other ethnic communities.
The historical Sirampuriya became a hub for the Adi and Mising tribes as people of both communities assembled at the festival’s venue and pledged to foster their unity and brotherhood.
Prominent leaders and denizens of Arunachal, including Pasighat West MLA Ninong Ering, former MLA Tatung Jamoh, DFO (T) Boken Pao, retired education director Tapi Gao and representatives of the Adi Ba:ne Kebang, besides TMPK leaders and elected councillors of the Mising Autonomous Council of Assam attended the celebration.
Dwelling on the Solung mythology and the evolution of the Adi-Mising civilization, AMBK advisor Atlek Perme said, “The myths and traditional ethos pertaining to agriculture-based festivals like Solung is common among the tribes belonging to the Tani group.”
The headmaster of Yagrung secondary school, Talu Dai stressed the need for preservation of traditional customs, and requested the people of both neighbouring states to “work with closer coordination in case of any unfavourable situation.”
DFO Boken Pao stated that “communal tension in the boundary areas with Dhemaji of Assam has improved much after reunification of the Adi and Mising communities.”
Among others, TMPK president Raj Kumar Morang and general secretary Tilak Doley, and AMBK secretary-general Okom Yosung spoke in favour of the Adi-Mising unity through cultural exchanges.
This was the sixth edition of Solung festival celebration organized jointly in Assam by Adi and Mising organizations. The organizers had last year conducted Adi-Mising Baane Solung in Mebo in East Siang district.
