Santals are an integral part of Assamese society: CM

Bokakhat, Jan 28: Chief Minister Sarbanda Sonowal on Sunday attended the 8th Biennial Conference of Intertiol Santal Council as chief guest at tya Mandir, Bokakhat in Golaghat district.  Speaking on the occasion, he said that the Santals have been making tremendous contribution to the economy of the State and they are an integral part of the greater Assamese society.

Urging the young generation of the Santal community to empower themselves with knowledge to be able to contribute meaningfully to the society, Sonowal said that the State government is working dedicatedly towards ensuring good governce at all levels and equal development of all sections of the society. He also pitched for taking concerted efforts to preserve the OLCIKI language of the Santals, their vivid rituals, culture, literature and called on all stakeholders to encourage the youth of the community to realise the tremendous contributions made by the Santals to the societies of various countries inhabited by them.

Notably, Intertiol Santal Council is a platform for Santal population residing in India and other countries such as Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Mauritius etc where they deliberate on matters of their interest, identity and existence and act for strengthening unity among the members of the community.

Calling on the Santals of the State, who constitute a large portion of the State’s tea community, to take advantage of various welfare initiatives launched for them by the State government, Sonowal said that identifying sporting talents from within the tea community is one of the key focus areas of the government and that is why Chief Minister’s Tea Tribes’ Football Tourment has been started with the aim to spot talents from the interior tea garden areas and those talented footballers will be trained at the sports school which will be set up by the government for bringing laurels to the State and the country.

“Unity and harmony are the main  ingredients of a developed society and all sections of the people must stay together for taking the State on the path of development. Parents and teachers must encourage the youth to take up sports and achieve excellence. Sport teaches unity and camaraderie which are important traits to be imbibed by the young generation to become able citizens,” Sonowal said.

Saying that Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas is the government’s guiding principle as advocated by Prime Minister rendra Modi, the Chief Minister said that equal development of each and every section of the people cutting across social divides has been the government’s goal as the government steadfastly pursues the objective of a society based on equality and harmony. The Santals have been the mainstay of the workforce engaged in tea industry in the State who have tremendous capacity to work hard and the State government is earnestly working towards fulfilment of their various demands, he added.  

Agriculture Minister Atul Bora also spoke on the occasion where Minister of State for Tea Tribes Welfare Department Pallab Lochan Das said that the matter of setting up an archery academy in the state would be considered by the government for harnessing the traditiol talent of the Santals in archery. Jorhat MP Kamakhya Prasad Tasa, Former Speaker of Assam Legislative Assembly and President of Intertiol Santal Council Prithvi Majhi also delivered their speeches.  Dignitaries of the Santal community from various parts of the country and world along with delegates of Intertiol Santal Council were also present in the programme. This was stated in a press release.