‘Khana Khazana (My food heritage)’ poster and essay competition was conducted by INTACH – Nagaland Chapter at the DBIDL, Dimapur on February 17. (Morung Photo)
Morung Express News
Dimapur | February 17
The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) Nagaland Chapter conducted a one-day poster and essay competition for school students of Dimapur on the theme, ‘Khana Khazana (My food heritage)’ at Don Bosco Institute for Development and Leadership (DBIDL), Dimapur on February 17.
Guest speaker for the event, Joel Basumatari, noted the significance of heritage food which is in essence, “the food passed down to us by our forefathers.” Every food item has a story behind its origin, he added. As such, it is essential to preserve the stories and folklores associated with food before it gets lost with the passage of time.
For Nagaland, he mentioned that the state has a rich array of vegetation and wildlife from which the people source their food. Each tribe has their own unique version of preparing the same food items. This diversity plays into the strength of the Nagas in building relationships with each other, he said. Thus he encouraged the students to learn about the origins of the food they consume which would help in the preservation of their cultural heritage.
Altogether, 65 students specifically from classes 7 to 9 took part in the competition.
Speaking to The Morung Express, Sentila T Yanger, Convenor, INTACH-Nagaland said, “This competition is a nation-wide event and it is to draw attention to our food heritage.” She mentioned that 100 regional winners will be selected in the first round following which 10 national winners will be announced in Delhi. “Every poster and painting will be sent to New Delhi where the selection process will take place,” she said.
Yanger also highlighted that the State has produced several national winners in past competitions. So I hope that we will get another national winner from here, she remarked.
Being passionate about heritage and culture, Yanger has been the chapter’s convenor since its inception. She added that the organisation has laid emphasis particularly on school children who will be the torch-bearers of tomorrow.
Besides the competition, Yanger mentioned that INTACH has 218 chapters spread across all the states in India. For Nagaland, the chapter began in the year 2005 and has been taking initiatives such as organising trips to heritage villages and sites, seminars and other activities.
