DEOMALI, 27 Nov: Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein unveiled a number of infrastructure expansions at the Mahabodhi Centre here in Tirap district on Monday during the 38th annual Poi Kanto Sangha & Maha Kathina ceremony.
The ceremony, which marked the birth centenary of the founder of the Mahabodhi Society in India, Ven Dr Acharya Buddharakkhita, also featured the inauguration of an extended Venerable Acharya Buddharakkhita boys’ hostel with a dining hall and a newly consecrated meditation hall.
Mein also launched the second phase of the Mahabodhi Rising Wisdom School at the centre. The school imparts both monastic teachings and NCERT curriculum to the students.
Reflecting on Acharya Buddharakkhita’s life, the DCM emphasised the importance of “preserving the state’s age-old cultures and traditions for overall growth and development.” He also recalled the acharya’s dream of establishing a Buddhist university in Arunachal Pradesh and his efforts to draft plans for it.
Mein further expressed his vision for a Buddhist university in the state, echoing the ancient legacy of institutions like the Nalanda University, where education and culture coexisted harmoniously.
He expressed gratitude to the Mahabodhi Educational, Cultural and Social Welfare Society of Arunachal Pradesh for its humanitarian service to the society and for imparting value-based education to the children.
Acharya Buddhara-kkhita, born in Imphal, Manipur, and an engineering graduate from Kolkata, played a pivotal role in the Indian freedom movement. Having experienced the violence of the Second World War
during his military service, he later renounced worldly pursuits to seek peace and truth. His journey led him to the path of the Buddha, and, under the guidance of the Ven Chandamani Mahathera, he became known as Ven Acharya Buddharakkhita.
The event was attended also by DoTCL Minister Wangki Lowang, Maha Bodhi Society president Ven Kassapa Mahathera Bhante, Maha Bodhi Society general secretary Ven Ananda Bhante, Mahabodhi Society director Ven Asaji Bhante, former minister Wangpha Lowang, the Tirap DC and the SP, and the Deomali ADC.
Later, the DCM inspected ‘Adhyayan – The Learning Pavilion and Digi-kaksha’ (smart classroom) at the Govt Upper Primary School in NTC, and at Wangcha Rajkumar Govt College here, which is an initiative of Deomali ADC Vishakha Yadav, aimed at instilling the reading habit among schoolchildren and college students with attractive features and updated information, creating a conducive atmosphere for studies.
Mein lauded the initiative of the Deomali ADC and assured that the government will support further infrastructure requirements of the government schools and college in the district. (DCM’s PR Cell)
