Itanagar, Nov 24: In a ‘rare’ honour, Arunachal Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein has been conferred with the prestigious Lachit Borphukan Award for the year 2022 by the Tai Ahom Yuva Parishad, Assam (TAYPA) in recognition of his selfless contributions for the welfare & upliftment of the society and for promotion & preservation of Tai culture.
A press note from the Dy Chief Minister's office said the award was presented to him at a function at Sankardev Kalakshetra in Guwahati in presence of a host of dignitaries.
Today’s award function coincided with the 400th birth anniversary of the great Ahom General Lachit Borphukan.
While receiving the award, Mein expressed his gratitude to the TAYPA for the recognition. He lauded the Assam government for organizing such a massive event in Assam and also in the national capital thereby making people across the nation to know about the valiant great hero of Assam who led the Ahom Army as commander-in-chief and defeated the Mughals in the battle of Saraighat (1671) and the battle of Itakhuli (1682) and prevented the crude forces of Mughals to conquer Assam and North East region.
He said that Mahavir Lachit Borphukan should be recognized as a national war hero. He was the force behind unification of Assam forces and prevented not only Assam but also the entire North East Region from foreign invasion. The defeat of the Mughal Army in the battle of Saraighat and Itakhuli by the Ahom Army under the leadership of Mahavir Lachit Borphukan had weakened them and prevented the further expansion of the Mughal Kingdom to South East Asian countries and to Tibet.
Mein further said that “we have read more about the Mughal history than our own history” and added that “it is high time to include the history of North East region in the CBSE syllabus so that our children read about our own history”.
He advocated for cultural exchange program and symposiums for all the ethnic groups of North East Region and the South East Asian countries at Guwahati - the gateway to NER - for strengthening the people to people contact and also for creation of a Tai tourist circuit in the region to attract tourists from the South East Asian countries.
He further called upon the young generation to maintain the age-old cordial relations between the people of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
Among others, Assam Police Commissioner Harmeet Singh, Joint Commissioner (Kamrup Metro) Partha Sararthi Mahanta, retired Advocate General Ramesh Borpatra Gohain, Padmashree awardee Dr Jogendra Nath Phukan and president of TAYPA Central Committee, Dilip Gogoi were present on the occasion.