Kohima, Dec 11 : The 10-day-long Hornbill Festival culminated at the Naga Heritage Village at Kisama, 12 km south of State Capital Kohima, with a grand finale today.
The biggest indigenous festival and the annual tourism promotional event of Nagaland government ended with 17 Naga tribes performing the ‘Unity Dance’ around a bonfire lit by Miss Nagaland Benjongmenla Jamir in the presence of a number of dignitaries. The tourists joined the cultural troupes in dancing to the tune of Naga drum beats around the bonfire.
Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio said that Nagaland has become a favoured destination to experience a culture closest to the nature. “This was proved by the increase in the number of visitors to the Hornbill Festival this year,” he stated.
Rio said, “The Hornbill Festival is the festival of festivals, because this is the coming together of all the tribes of the State at one place to showcase the cultural and traditional vibrancy of the Naga people.”
He said each of the Naga tribe celebrates its festivals in their respective district and the Hornbill Festival is the only place where all the tribes perform together and one can witness the vibrancy of Naga culture and tradition in one place.
He said that as on the eighth day of the festival this year, over 1.50 lakh visitors attended the festival.
“Over the years, we have improved and the number of visitors has also increased accordingly and I hope this will get bigger and better in the days to come,” he added.
Declaring the Hornbill Festival close, Nagaland Minister for Tourism EE Pangteang acknowledged the participation of cultural troupes and visitors for making the festival a grand success.
The Hornbill Festival, which coincides with the statehood golden jubilee celebrations, was officially launched by President Pranab Mukherjee on December 1.
Pic Source Nagaland Post
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