New Delhi: Th Kirankumar, Deputy Commissioner of Senapati district in Manipur, has authored a comic book on folktales from Mao, Maram and Poumai tribes of the state. The book contains a total of 15 folktales.
The coloured comic book captures the traditions and cultures of the tribal communities with an aim to preserve them and also help people from outside the state learn about them.
“Keeping in mind that children love stories and love to read comic books even more, we combined these two using our existing folktales to promote our culture as well as help engage them in reading books,” Kirankumar has been quoted as saying.
He also said the folktales were made available by the literature societies of Mao, Maram and Poumai tribes as well as the Maralui Karalimei Swijoikang (Maram Students’ Union). The comic book, he added, will be introduced as a supplementary text for school students.
16-yr-old Nagaland cricketer is youngest Indian in IPL auction
Khrievitso Kense, a 16-year-old from Nagaland, is the youngest Indian to feature in the pool of 292 players who have been shortlisted for the Indian Premier League auction to be held on 18 February in Chennai.
My best wishes to Khrievitso Kense from Nagaland, the youngest Indian player to be shortlisted for #IPL2021Auction. I hope he gets picked by a great franchisee that will perform excellently in the @IPL 2021. pic.twitter.com/Xw8M0xR81v
— Neiphiu Rio (@Neiphiu_Rio) February 13, 2021
A leg spinner, Kense took an impressive seven wickets in the T20 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy last month. Kense, who belongs to Nagaland’s Tuophema village, was also part of the state’s under-16 team in the Vijay Merchant trophy where he took five wickets on debut against Uttar Pradesh.
His journey to becoming a professional cricketer started when he was only seven, when he would play with the tennis ball with friends.
“The first ball I bowled with the leather ball was when I was 12. My leg-spin began to come out well. In Nagaland, football is very popular. I also play football and table tennis, but on TV, I only watch cricket,” he has been quoted as saying.
Assam environmentalist combats religious beliefs, returns 300 ‘extinct’ turtles to wild
Jayaditya Purkayastha, a herpetologist from Guwahati, is helping revive the population of black softshell turtles, which are considered extinct in the wild.
The main reason behind their extinction the world over is hunting. In Assam, however, religious beliefs have confined them to temples, reported The Better India.
“The tradition links back to the Ahom kings when these turtles were deeply admired and donated to the ponds. The practice continues today — people donate turtles when a child is born, as it represents long life, or to mark a woman’s menstruation cycle, as it symbolises fertility,” Purkayastha has been quoted as saying.
At least 29 temple ponds in Assam have turtles. These animals never returned to the wild and failed to get their natural diet. “Getting the turtles away from the temple premises would mean hurting religious sentiments of the devotees,” he added.
Purkayastha began explaining to the temple authorities about the “biological needs” of these turtles. He has so far released 300 softshell turtles into the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in the state.
Nagaland cop helps students prepare for civil services, counsels drug addicts
Pritpal Kaur, superintendent of police in Noklak, Nagaland’s newest district, has been working to help improve the lives of people in this remote corner of the country.
Kaur, who cracked civil services in 2016, has been helping students prepare for the exam and also counsels drug addicts as well as their families. A qualified dentist, she also helps those suffering from dental illnesses.
The officer has turned the conference hall of her office into a classroom and around 30 students attend classes from 6 am to 10 am three times a week. The students are also prepared for SSC (Staff Selection Commission), CAPF (Central Armed Police Forces), bank and state-level departmental exams. She buys books and other study materials using part of her own salary.
“Noklak shares a border with Myanmar and is, perhaps, the remotest district in the country. It lacks infrastructure. I thought I can take my time off in the morning and conduct classes to give them some direction in life,” Kaur has been quoted as saying.
Also read: Why Manipur man is cycling 5,000 km through Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai & Delhi