Tetseo Sisters receives 9th Yamin Hazarika Woman of Substance Award in Guwahati on November 4.
Kohima, November 6 (MExN): Tetseo Sisters, the vocal quartet from Nagaland, have been conferred with 9th Yamin Hazarika Woman of Substance Award at a function held in Guwahati on November 4 for their contribution to promoting traditional and folk music.
The Tetseo Sisters-consisting Mercy, Azi, Kuvelü and Alüne expressed gratitude for the honour and accepted the Award with humility and great joy for the encouragement and acknowledgment.
Tetseo sisters from Nagaland celebrated the songs of life, the beauty of the hills and storytelling, through the language of Li or folk singing in Chokri Naga dialect.
The sisters first performed as a group in 1994 and have been making regular appearances at the Hornbill Festival in Nagaland and at several other festivals and events all over the world.
The award ceremony was graced by senior IPS officer, Harmeet Singh and Dr Poonam Dohutia as the guest of honour, a bureaucrat based in Canada.
A panel discussion on ‘Art as a therapeutic experience’ was also held on the occasion.
The moderator was Reshma Shah and the panellists included Dr Nahid Islam, psychiatrist and Dr Asha Kuthari Chaudhuri of Gauhati University.
The event was anchored by Tinat Atifa Masood. Welcome speech was delivered by eminent educationist Nellie Ahmed, the journey of the award was described by senior journalist and author, Teresa Rehman. The awardees were introduced by senior journalist, Nasreen Habib.
The Award is instituted in memory of Yamin Hazarika, the first woman from the Northeast to join the central police service. The award celebrates the life of the iconic woman named Yamin Hazarika, a 1977-batch DANIPS officer. And recognises women who have contributed significantly to the greater good of society.
Hailing from Assam, Yamin Hazarika was selected for the NCT of Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli Police service (DANIPS) in 1977. She held the post of assistant commissioner of Police in Chanakyapuri (Delhi) and went on to become deputy commissioner of police (Crime against Women Cell) in the national capital. In the crucial period after the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Hazarika was in-charge of three key police stations. In 1998, she was posted in Bosnia as part of the UN peacekeeping force. But her life was tragically cut short by destiny as she succumbed to cancer at the age of 43 in 1999. Hazarika shattered many glass ceilings and her extraordinary life ignited many young minds.
Previous awardees include notable Journalist and Activist Patricia Mukhim, Meghalaya; Writer Namita Gokhale and Historian Rana Safvi among others.
