Shillong: Chief Minister Mukul Sangma on Saturday hosted a pre-Indigenous Terra Madre 2015 evening, ‘Iing Shet Ja’, the Earth Kitchen, in the national capital.
The curtain raiser event, held at Meghalaya House, was attended by Union Minister of State for Home, Kiran Rijijju, Minister, Social Welfare, A H & Vety, Meghalaya, Deborah Marak, Chief Secretary, Meghalaya, P B O Warjri, Ambassadors of Italy, Slovak Republic and Bangladesh and senior officers from different departments from the Central and state governments.
Sangma while addressing the gathering spoke on the significance of ITM 2015 and shared how this initiative was in sync with his vision of developing ‘Destination Meghalaya’.
According to him, the festival gives an opportunity for Meghalaya and the North East in general to connect with the rest of the country and the world.
The festival, to be held in Shillong from November 3 to 7, will witness participation of 100 indigenous tribes from 58 countries.
The festival will also offer visitors opportunity for experimenting with their taste palettes- honey bars, exotic recipes, indigenous herbs, vegetables, pickling techniques and other delights to discover and flaunt as stories of an incredible trip to the unchartered North East.
The Chief Minister also shared the ITM theme song, which was the interpretation of the social grandeur that ITM deserves as cultural, social and artistic coming together.
The evening brought together the dignitaries of the capital for a curtain raiser to the event in Meghalaya which will also see 41 host villages ITM 2015 pre-event IIng …
(Contd. from P-1) become partners to welcome this global gathering.
Addressing the gathering, Phrang Roy, Chairman, NESFAS & Coordinator, Indigenous Partnership, Rome, shared the key messages of ITM 2015.
Joining him in sharing this global vision was Carlo Petrini, the Founder of the Slow Food movement.
The Chief Minister also unveiled the Exhibition Wall, ‘From the Eyes of Mother Earth’ by eminent photographer Andre J Fanthome. The exhibition is a result of a fortnight spent by Mr Fanthome in villages of Meghalaya.
The evening also had the Pynter Orchestra from Khasi Hills adding glamour to the evening with their soulful rendition of popular Khasi, Garo and Jaintia songs on traditional Khasi musical instruments.