On Wednesday, as the first-ever Indian Premier League (IPL) match was held in Guwahati, traditional dance performances representing all the major states of North East India, including Tripura, were presented to welcome the teams.
Dancers from Tripura performed the famous dance form of the state, known as “Hojagiri,” adding more vibrancy to the event. Minister Sukla Charan Noatia thanked the Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa, in a tweet, for the efforts to showcase the Reang community’s best dance performances, including the Hojagiri dance, at the stadium in Guwahati during the start of the IPL games.
The aim was to take this dance form to the world stage.
NE MPs ask for scholarship for civil service aspirants
The North East MPs’ Forum (NEMF) has written a letter to the Union DoNER (Development of North Eastern Region) Minister G. Kishan Reddy, urging the Central government to introduce a scholarship scheme worth Rs 10 crore per year for students from northeastern states who want to appear for the UPSC examinations.
The NEMF pointed out that there is a low representation of northeastern states in IAS, IPS, and other central civil services, except for a few successful candidates from Manipur and Assam. The letter also mentioned that despite state governments’ efforts, the number of successful candidates from the region has been consistently declining. The NEMF suggested that a scholarship scheme should be introduced to identify deserving and needy civil service aspirants and provide them with coaching in Delhi or state capitals. The proposed fund of Rs 10 crore per year can be evenly distributed among the eight northeastern states, including Sikkim. The NEMF also recommended that a coaching institute of national repute with a good success rate from the northeast and having a presence in the region should be identified for this scheme.
