'Discover North East Yatra' ends

Agartala, March 11 (IANS) The first ever nine-month-long cultural extravaganza, the "Discover North East Yatra" ended here on Wednesday, having created a cultural bonding among the artistes and the common people of the eight north-eastern states, an official said.

Dimapur-based (Nagaland) North East Zone Cultural Centre (NEZCC), operating under the union ministry of culture, organised the festival to preserve, innovate, promote, project and disseminate the arts and culture of the north-eastern region.

"Over 1,000 artistes and performers, comprising men and women, took part in the nine-month-long cultural extravaganza, the 'Discover North East Yatra'," NEZCC spokesman Ranjan Kumar Biswas told IANS.

He said that the unique and colourful festival had begun in May last year through a cultural show in Nagaland and then the festival travelled to Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura.

Biswas said: "'Discover North East Yatra' was organised to develop and promote the rich diversity and uniqueness of various arts and cultures of the north-east, especially the indigenous dance and music of the region, mostly performed in the rural and remote areas."

In each show, 130 to 140 artistes of different ethnic groups showcased their distinctive arts, music and dance.

Tripura assembly deputy speaker Pabitra Kar, who was present at the closing function, said: "The NEZCC in association with the other state cultural bodies must organise such festivals every year and should reach out to the artistes in remote, rural and inaccessible areas."

The mountainous north-east region has more than 150 different tribes besides a considerable number of Bengali speaking people.

Over 28 percent of the north-east's 45.58 million population are tribals.