RONO HILLS, Mar 22: A four-day national workshop on “Documenting Oral Traditions of Northeast India” commenced at Rajiv Gandhi University today organized by Arunachal Institute of Tribal Studies and Centre for Endangered Languages, RGU, in collaboration with Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, New Delhi.

Speaking on the occasion, Chief Guest, Prof. A.C Bhagabati (Hon. Coordinator, Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, NERC, Guwahati, Former Vice Chancellor, Arunachal University) stated that oral tradition is dynamic and the use of technology driven documentation process should not compromise the essence of oral tradition.

Delivering the keynote address, Padma Shri Prof. Anvita Abbi (Hon. Director, Centre for Oral and Tribal Literature, Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, and President, Linguistic Society of India) emphasised on the “The Role of Oral Tradition in Safeguarding the Intangible Cultural Heritage” with a special mention on the Endangered Languages and Culture of The Adamanese. She also mentioned that “Safeguarding a worldview or system of beliefs is even more challenging than preserving a natural environment”.

Guest of Honor, Prof. Jawaharlal Handoo (President, Indian Folklore Congress, Mysore) spoke on the essence of Folklore Studies in contemporary times. He stressed upon the importance of Participatory Documentation, where community member actively participate in documenting their culture.

Prof. Tamo Mibang, the Vice Chancellor of the University, emphasised on the relevance of undertaking research in Oral Traditions of tribal societies.

Prof. S Simon John, Director AITS, RGU introduced the programme and spoke about the importance of  documenting, preservation, safeguarding and dissemination of  the oral traditions of this region.  An annual newsletter by The Centre for Endangered Languages entitled “CFEL Research Newsletter” was released on the occasion which highlights the research on endangered languages of Arunachal Pradesh.

In the four-day workshop, various concepts and methodologies for documenting oral traditions of Northeast India will be given by the resource persons from RGU, JNU, Malayalam University, Sahitya Akademi, Vishwa Bharati Santiniketan, IGNCA, Guwahati University, Pondicherry Central University, eminent film makers etc.

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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