SEPPA, Feb 22: Chief Minister Pema Khandu today said that the state government is seriously working to promote and preserve the indigenous culture of the state’s 24 major tribes and more than 100 sub-tribes and cited the creation of an independent Department of Indigenous Affairs a couple of years back.

Khandu was addressing the grand 10-day Golden Jubilee Nyokum celebrations at Seppa, headquarters of East Kameng on Tuesday.

Adorned in Nyishi traditional attire, he hailed the Nyishis for preserving and practicing their age old customs and celebrating Nyokum with traditional rituals headed by the local shamans or the Nyibus. He called out to all community members to preserve and practice indigenous rituals and festivals irrespective of their faith or religion.

“Festivals like Nyokum and the rituals associated with it are the identity of the Nyishis. Therefore, all Nyishis including those following different religions must celebrate Nyokum and proudly preserve their identity, which they are doing and my respects to them,” he said. 

Observing that several persons were attending the festival in shirt and pants (western clothes), Khandu appealed to them to wear their traditional attires at least during festivals. He urged them to come in traditional attires to the festival ground on 26th February (the main day of the festival) when Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Arjun Munda will be joining as chief guest. He called on youths studying in colleges and universities to lead from the front in preserving indigenous culture of Arunachal Pradesh.

Khandu said for development of the state, people should broaden their perspective and rise from being individual centric to a pan-Arunachal school of thought.

“On the government’s part, we are striving hard for unification and development of the state based on pan-Arunachal mode.Our elected representatives may be from different political parties but for me all 60 assembly constituencies, irrespective of which political party the concerned legislator hails from, are my own and it’s my responsibility to ensure equal development,” he said.

Referring to his last visit to the district when he toured Chayang Tajo and Bameng constituencies traveling by road, Khandu informed that paper works have been completed for the reconstruction of the Seppa-Chayang Tajo and the Pakke-Bameng roads.

Appealing the people to let the executing agencies work unhindered, he urged

upon civil society leaders, especially the East Kameng Social Welfare and Cultural Organization (EKSWCO) to take the responsibility of ensuring smooth completion of the two road projects.

Informing that literacy rate of the state has touched 82% as per the latest reports, Khandu however said the focus should be on quality education rather than on number of literates. He said the government under the leadership of Education Minister Taba Tedir has initiated several measures to revamp the education system in the state with the focus on quality, not quantity.

Congratulating successful state civil service aspirants and other newly recruited government employees, Khandu said that he felt good seeing Nyishi youths emerging successful in large numbers in recent competitive examinations conducted by the state staff selection board and state public service commission.

“Today, job creation is in our hands but giving jobs is not in our hands. With the new system in place, people will get jobs only on merit. No political backing or backdoor tactics will work,” he asserted.

Responding to few demands of the public, Khandu assured funds for a new Circuit House at Seppa, a state-of-the-art auditorium and construction of Seppa township roads. He also assured to pursue with the Union Law Ministry, which is headed by Kiren Rijiju, for the establishment of a district court at Seppa.