Itanagar:The three-day Twang Festival, a mega tourism extravaganza will begin at Tawang, an important seat of Mahayana Buddhism bordering China from today.
Arunachal Pradesh Tourism Minister Pema Khandu chaired a high level meeting at Tawang to chalk out the detailed road map for successfully holding the event.
The yesterday’s meeting was attended among others by Tawang MLA Tsering Tashi, Department of Karmik and Adhyatmik Affairs (DoKAA) Chairman Jambey Wangdi, Tawang DC Abhishek Dev, HoDs, Panchayat leaders, officials from Army, SSB, BSNL, and local NGOs.
The Minister eloquently highlighted the journey of the festival since its inception in 2012.
“Tawang festival is no more a community or regional fest but has grown into a full fledged global event which draws mammoth flow of tourists, keen to mingle and savour our rich tradition”, he said, while declaring to make the three-day fest an annual calendar event.
“Such festivals are the major platform to showcase our rich, varied and unique lifestyle, culture and traditions to the outside world and no Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) should be served at the rendezvous,” Mr Khandu asserted and said forbidding the sale of IMFL in a bid to showcase local brews and cuisines during the festival.
Tsering exhorted for ‘a vegetarian and alcohol free festival’.
Emphasising on celebrating the festival with an appropriate theme, he called upon the Indian Army and SSB to work in tandem to make the mega festival a grand success.
In his deliberations, DC Abhishek Dev stressed on putting a stringent tab on the closing time of stalls and ‘routine’ for serving liquor in the eateries to ward off any untoward incident.
DoKAA chairman Jambey Wangdi while appealing everyone to work for maintaining the sanctity of the land, pushed for highlighting more cultural and traditional heritage of the pious region during the celebrations. (UNI)