Our Correspondent
Porba | November 16
Porba village under Phek district today celebrated its traditional Khiliinyie (Fish festival) on Tuesday with Kevisa Kense, director fishery Nagaland as the chief guest.
Speaking on the occasion, Kense announced that the department will be adopting Porba village to boost large scale production of fish in the village.
He said the department will support the fishery pond project in the village.
The director called upon the villagers to take advantage of the offer and take up fishery project as income generation activity.
He also released documentary booklet on Porbami traditional Khiliinyie.
Earlier, the function was chaired by Porba village council chairman Shekhozo Thiilii-o while Zaciita Puro led prelude to Khiliinyie.
Act of blessing was done by Razouveyi Dziido, GB. MLA Kuzholuzo (Azo) Nienu also attended the celebration.
Khiliinyie is celebrated to mark the new year right after the cultivated crops have been harvested.
The festival is celebrated by invoking God’s blessing to have a good sustainable pro-summer and judicious use of the crops gathered. The festival has seven days ritual that are observed during the feast.
The first day of the festival which falls on 21st day of the Lunar month taking seven days is called Khikro.
It is a preparation for the festival. The term Khikro means dropping of paddy grains into the Barns, that has been collected by hands from the left over grains from the paddy fields, as a ritual to be performed. And on this day all the people go to the field to catch the fish for themselves. The catched fishes are not allowed to be taken inside the village that day, but are kept at the outskirts of the village near the village gates. These are then collected the next day.
The second day is Khilii Liide which means the first observation day by eating new paddy with the fish that was collected in the morning.
The third day called Uva Kiitiih which means ritual preparation for oneself to live a better system in consumption of yearly produce in a more judicious way.
Meve, is an act of making reconciliation with the wild fire and on this day no one is allowed to smoke to protect properties against the destruction caused by wild life.
Utheva is an act of reconciliation with the most furious wild tiger (Uthe) which means our great grandfather which we generally believe them (Tiger) to be our great grandfather, in the course of history.
The last day and seven day of the festival is termed as Gwaphiih Chieswiih. Traditionally this festival can be rightly assumed to be the festival of new beginning and the New Year.
