Tura, Mar 8: The International Women’s Day was on Friday observed in Garo Hills at multiple venues at the district level, block level and by various other institutions both government and private, to honor Women on their special day.
The district level celebration of the occasion took place in South West Garo Hills where the day was observed by the District Administration at Baispara village under Betasing C&RD Block.
The celebration themed “Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress”, was spearheaded by the Department of Social Welfare, South West Garo Hills Ampati and participated by officials of various departments, units, women entrepreneurs, women’s groups and other self-help groups with the support of the village Nokmas among others.
Attending the celebration at Baispara as the chief guest and resource person, Sr.MHO in-charge Betasing PHC, Dr.Midrose R. Marak, underlined the importance of health and well being of women as they are the pillar of families as well as the society, saying that a family or society can crumble if the pillar is weak. She highlighted various health issues affecting women, ways to prevent them and urged all women to have at least a few hours of physical activity and go for periodic health check-ups at their nearest health facility.
Meanwhile at Betasing block headquarter, the day was also celebrated with various activities in the presence of Dr.Nokman A. Sangma, AH& Veterinary Officer as the chief guest and attended by Pratap Chettri, Branch Manager, MRB, Ampati, Norimchi R. Marak, DFS, IBCB and various women’s groups. Similar program to celebrate Women’s Day was also organized at Rerapara Block by CDPO Rerapara.
The occasion was also celebrated at Debragre under Dadenggre Block where Tura MP Agatha K Sangma was the Chief Guest.
Speaking on the occasion, Agatha underscored the pivotal roles women play in societal development and emphasized their significant contributions to family upbringing. Additionally, she highlighted various government schemes aimed at empowering women.
Among the dignitaries present were Jimmy Sangma, MLA Tikriklla, Dormonath Ch Sangma, MDC Gaguapara, SSaljagring Momin, MCS BDO Dadenggre, and representatives from BAKDIL, MSRLS Dadenggre, and the District Social Welfare office in Tura who collaborated to organize the program.
The Tura Christian College also celebrated the International women’s day acknowledging the numerous contributions of Women in the society, with the Former GHADC Chairman and MDC Dengnakpara, Sadhia Rani M Sangma as the Chief Guest and Secretary of Mothers Union Tura Mrs. Sume B Marak as the Guest of honour.
Speaking as the Chief Guest, Dengnakpara MDC Sadhiarani M Sangma urged young female students to embrace leadership roles and contribute to the betterment of women in society. She emphasized the pivotal role of women in driving positive change, setting the tone for the day’s events.
Meanwhile, Secretary of Mother’s Union Tura, Sume B Marak, shed light on the struggles faced by women in rural areas and passionately called for an end to the cycle of oppression and injustice. Her message resonated strongly with the audience, inspiring a commitment to creating a more equitable society.
Two dedicated women- Dilme A Sangma and Rosetry Ch Marak were felicitated on the occasion for their invaluable service at Leprosy colony, Tura and Tura Christian Hospital respectively.
The occasion was also celebrated by the ABVP Tura Unit with the organization of a Football Tournament exclusively for Girls at Bolbokgre Village in West Garo Hills. The Football Tournament was also followed by some traditional sports of Garo Hills in which all the girls and the women members of the Village participated.
The College of Community Science, Central Agricultural University (Imphal) and NABARD Tura, West Garo Hills also celebrate the occasion with a theme “Inspire inclusive”.
The Programme was graced by Kit Miller Sangma DDM, NABARD as Chief Guest who expressed his view on women’s equality, gender equality, and opportunity for all. He also emphasized the development of women through education and skill development for sustainable livelihood.
As part of the occasion, to inspire the women, various competitions were held, where many participants participated in different competitions like slogan writing, poem recitation, embroidery, salad dressing, and flower arrangement.
The Don Bosco College, Tura, spearheaded by its Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) also held a day-long programme on the day to mark the occasion.
Caption: Women participants following the celebration of the International Women’s Day at Tura Christian College.