New Delhi, Jan 23 : Amiya Phukan, 15, lost her father in the serial bomb blasts in Assam last October. Yet, just three months later, she is here among proud NCC cadets who will participate in the Republic Day parade.
Phukan is one of the nearly 2,000 NCC cadets from 17 directorates or regions from across the country selected to participate in the Jan 26 march.
"When I came to know that I would be a part of the Republic Day parade in Delhi, I was overjoyed. But even more excited than me was my father... he was so proud of me that he went around telling everyone about it," Phukan told IANS, her soft voice often getting drowned in the hustle and bustle of the rehearsals at the capital's Vijay Chowk.
"Then when the blasts happened in October, we were shattered. I was in no mood to take part in the parade. But my mother encouraged me to go ahead because that is what my father would have wanted," she said, trying not to let the surging emotions show on her young face and adjusting her 'gam kharu', the traditional bangles that women wear while dancing Bihu.
While not everyone may have a heart-breaking story to tell of their recent past like Phukan, almost everyone had the same tale to tell of their present - that this was a moment they would always cherish in their lives.
"This is my first time in the capital of the country. Some of my friends who had participated in the parade last year had said that it gets very cold here, but I am quite comfortable. It gets a little chilly in the mornings when we have to go for practice, but that's about it," said Sharat Nair of Tamil Nadu.
"I do not enjoy north Indian food like rajma-chawal and our schedules are packed throughout the day, starting at dawn. But I am not complaining because despite all that I am enjoying every moment here. I have made many friends from other directorates and we have already decided to get together during the summer vacations," he said.
Similarly Roshanara Khan of Jammu and Kashmir said that she plans to come to Delhi next month to meet some of her friends from Uttar Pradesh.
"This is not my first time to Delhi but I have hardly visited the markets here which my friends from the Uttar Pradesh directorate keep talking about! Therefore we have decided to come here again next month and then explore the capital by ourselves," she said.
Balancing the bagpipe and synchronising his tune with the rest of his band, Puia from Mizoram said that the NCC camp was the perfect place to learn about other cultures.
"It's better than the social studies that we are taught in school! You see and interact with so many people that you learn much better about other cultures than the theoretical knowledge in the books," he said.
According to NCC spokesperson Col. Someshwar Singh Sinsinwar, besides the 1,950 NCC cadets participating in the parade, there are 65 foreign participants.
"We have foreign participants from Russia, Kazakhstan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, the Maldives and Vietnam," Sinsinwar told IANS.
Encapsulating the mood in a subtle way, Phukan said: "I feel proud to be a part of the Republic Day parade which, till now, we only got to see on TV. In Assam, there always is a blast or some attack on Independence and Republic Days. This time, I am glad that I will walk without fear on Jan 26."
Showing posts with label india. Show all posts
Showing posts with label india. Show all posts
CRYC lambasts condemnations on Chingmeirong imbroglio
Imphal, Dec 22 : More ruckus have kicked up in the aftermath of the alleged church dismantling incident at a Chingmeirong village in Imphal on December 14 evening as allegations and counter-allegations have become the order of the day.
The Chingmeirong Rongmei Youth Club (CRYC) today termed the condemnations of various Christian organisations and 'other secular fora' as unfortunate while North East India Jesus Gospel Ministry and Nagaland Baptist Churches Council (NBCC) have called upon the Government of Manipur to ensure the safety of Christians and urged to bring the culprits to justice at the earliest.
Chingmeirong Rongmei Youth Club cautions the various Christian organisations to refrain from issuing biased and one sided statements without investigating and analysing the facts and figures of the December 14 incident.
The CRYC said that the incident in the Chingmeirong village was purely an internal matter which can be solved 'internally'.
Revealing the genesis of the incident, the CRYC said that the Chingmeirong womenfolks have been on a regular duty every evening as a measure of keeping away all untoward incidents from the village as the festival of Gaan-Ngai is approaching and in doing so it so happened that one evening some misunderstanding cropped up between the wife of Kaphun and the womenfolks guarding the village.
The CRYC termed the December 14 incident as 'purely' between the womenfolks and Kaphun's wife.
The CRYC clarified that the incident had nothing to do with religion nor the village issue.
The RCYC then appealed all the organisations to study the incident minutely before making wild allegations as the matter may blow out of proportion.
The Club then warned that it would no longer remain a silent spectator to the various wild allegations made by the organisations against the peace loving village.
Meanwhile, Jesus Gospel Ministry, North East India chairman Ashang Kasar alleged that they were not the womenfolks who had dismantled the church at Chingmeirong village but the man-folks including the youths who came out with axes and other tools and carried out the vandalism work to the church structure.
Ashang Kasar further alleged that the Zeliangrong Rapchapriak Phom had issued a concocted press statement.
The Jesus Gospel Ministry chairman then said that everyone in India lives under the Constitution of India and that the laws of the country is higher than the village resolutions.
Freedom of religion or right to religion is a unique feature the Constitution of India has granted to every citizen of India and the village resolution should not dominate the law of the country, quipped Ashang Kasar.
Ashang Kasar then claimed he knew what had happened on the night of December 14 at the Chingmeirong village.
The Nagaland Baptist Churches Council (NBCC) has expressed shock and unhappiness over the alleged church dismantling incident at the Chingmeirong village and termed the incident as unfortunate.
The Council then urged the government of Manipur to take up steps so that the Christians are safe.
Newmai News Network
The Chingmeirong Rongmei Youth Club (CRYC) today termed the condemnations of various Christian organisations and 'other secular fora' as unfortunate while North East India Jesus Gospel Ministry and Nagaland Baptist Churches Council (NBCC) have called upon the Government of Manipur to ensure the safety of Christians and urged to bring the culprits to justice at the earliest.
Chingmeirong Rongmei Youth Club cautions the various Christian organisations to refrain from issuing biased and one sided statements without investigating and analysing the facts and figures of the December 14 incident.
The CRYC said that the incident in the Chingmeirong village was purely an internal matter which can be solved 'internally'.
Revealing the genesis of the incident, the CRYC said that the Chingmeirong womenfolks have been on a regular duty every evening as a measure of keeping away all untoward incidents from the village as the festival of Gaan-Ngai is approaching and in doing so it so happened that one evening some misunderstanding cropped up between the wife of Kaphun and the womenfolks guarding the village.
The CRYC termed the December 14 incident as 'purely' between the womenfolks and Kaphun's wife.
The CRYC clarified that the incident had nothing to do with religion nor the village issue.
The RCYC then appealed all the organisations to study the incident minutely before making wild allegations as the matter may blow out of proportion.
The Club then warned that it would no longer remain a silent spectator to the various wild allegations made by the organisations against the peace loving village.
Meanwhile, Jesus Gospel Ministry, North East India chairman Ashang Kasar alleged that they were not the womenfolks who had dismantled the church at Chingmeirong village but the man-folks including the youths who came out with axes and other tools and carried out the vandalism work to the church structure.
Ashang Kasar further alleged that the Zeliangrong Rapchapriak Phom had issued a concocted press statement.
The Jesus Gospel Ministry chairman then said that everyone in India lives under the Constitution of India and that the laws of the country is higher than the village resolutions.
Freedom of religion or right to religion is a unique feature the Constitution of India has granted to every citizen of India and the village resolution should not dominate the law of the country, quipped Ashang Kasar.
Ashang Kasar then claimed he knew what had happened on the night of December 14 at the Chingmeirong village.
The Nagaland Baptist Churches Council (NBCC) has expressed shock and unhappiness over the alleged church dismantling incident at the Chingmeirong village and termed the incident as unfortunate.
The Council then urged the government of Manipur to take up steps so that the Christians are safe.
Newmai News Network
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