Our 20th Foundation Day was celebrated on January 31 in our Uzan Bazar premises. In the solemn function, Mizo preceptor Puitham Rorelliana was honoured with the prestigious VKIC Sanmaan, for 2016.

Puitham Rorelliana has devoted his life towards protection and promotion of ancient Mizo wisdom, culture, and beliefs among his community. In his endeavour since the time he received enlightenment till present he had to surmount many hurdles; but his ceaseless efforts enabled revival of the early Mizo belief system to a great extent.

The VKIC Sanmaan was presented to Sri Rorelliana by Chief Guest of the function Ranjan Chatterjee, retired IAS officer, who had served as a former Chief Secretary of Meghalaya.

The award to Puitham Rorellianacomprised a citation, a memento, and rupees twenty-five thousand.

Vivekananda Kendra Institute of Culture deems it a privilege to felicitate Puitham Rorelliana, who was born to Pi Rualachhingi and Pu Pakunga on  1 October, 1947  at Biyate village, Mizoram.

It was in 1966 that he had his first vision of the Supreme Being, Chung Khuanu which irreversibly  transformed   young Reorellia into a Mizo preceptor, Puitham. So engrossed was he in his spiritual pursuits that he took up fasting once a week, only to distribute his share of the food to the less privileged. In course of time his spiritual experiences and insights led him to sculpt, a holistic model of Mizo Sakhua - Mizo Swadharma.

His tour of several European countries and of Israel in 1983 convinced him that the Supreme Being is One; each community has to necessarily invoke and worship the Divine through its traditional roots in order to restore peace within and amongst communities. Non-adherence to and not to work for the uplift of one’s indigenous faith and one’s country is sin, he declared. To preserve, protect and promote Nunna Lal Hnamthe Mizo ancestral faith, Puitham Rorelliana  started an organization in 1985 Lalchungkua(the Lord’s Family) which over a period of time came to be called Zo-HnamSakhua(The Vibrant Lord’s Own People). One of his first initiatives was to restore the pride of place to traditional Mizo attire and Mizo ritual music and dance.

In the course of his glorious journey of to organize the Mizo people, he developed the women’s wing LalhnamHmachia Pawl. A youth wing, Mizo SakhuaHumhalh, was launched to train youth to sustain the indigenous faith.                                    

To develop Mizo Sakhua systematically Puitham Rorelliana formed Lalrun,  the temple, where all the faithful assemble every week. This includes prayers, discussions on Sakhua and imparting knowledge to the younger generation. His developed prayers, mantras, stories and principles of Sakhua that have been compiled and published.

He envisioned the rejuvenation of the community and increased output of agriculture for the well being of Mizoram that led to the establishment in1990 of the Sakhua village, ChhanchhuanaKhawpui, ‘the village of liberation’.  . His deep urge to impart the spiritual wisdom of ancestors  led to the establishment of Lalhnam Sikul in Thingsulthliah village.
 
His persistent efforts have paved the way to reinvigorate the traditional beliefs and customs of communities, which with their perennial values are not just a part of his culture, but a treasure for all humanity.

For your vision of evolving a system of education rooted in one’s ancestral faith, for your emphasis on agriculture as a necessary corollary of traditional faith and culture, for your tremendous, multi-dimensional and organized efforts to inspire several communities to re-connect with one’s eternal, ancestral faith, the anatanaculture; forverily giving a new lease of life to the ancient Mizo tradition by rekindling the process of Self-Renewal The Vivekananda Kendra Institute of Culture salutes Puitham Rorelliana, the Illustrious son of Mother Bharat and on the occasion of its Foundation Day Celebrations confers on him the VKIC SANMAAN – 2016.

31 January, 2016.                                                                              Dipok Kumar Barthakur                           Guwahati                                                                                           Chairman

Accepting the award, Puitham Rorelliana underlined the virtues of his ancient faith. He said that with the arrival of a new faith the finerelements of the earlier way of life were destroyed. He was of the view that the perennial qualities of ancient Mizo beliefs should be understood and appreciated by all. According to him, every man should be able to practice one’s own religion, no one should impose his religious beliefs on others. He blessed the audience present in the traditional Mizo way.

He thanked the VKIC for conferring him the award and said that the honour was not just for him but for the entire Mizo community. He made an appeal to forfeit violence and embrace peace for the good of all.

In the Foundation Day lecture ‘Development Perspectives to India’s North East and Environmental Concerns,’ Chatterjee, presently a member of the National Green Tribunal,was of the view that although India’s growth has been remarkable in recent years, the Northeast has lagged behind.

Quoting Prof. Ashish Banerjee coinage of BIMARU states, which were once poor and underdeveloped, he mentioned that the Northeast has not made the same progress these once underdeveloped states have made.
 
For development of Northeast India there was a need for better synergy among government agencies. There should also be better co-ordination among State Government and local bodies in different forms and also between State Governments and the Union Government. It is one of the main reasons for poor development and disquiet among people.

Agriculture is no longer considered attractive in the Northeast. Dearth of marketing and storage facilities is another factor behind meagre development in the region, which needs to be redressed.
Chatterjee identified two particular sectors which can be explored for the development of the Northeastern States. Health and wellness is an area where the people of the region can use their natural disposition after being properly trained. Tourism is another sphere which can open up employment opportunities and bring much needed economic gains for the people. Involvement of local people, as has been seen in an area in Meghalaya, can also help protect natural resources.

The railways can bring much needed development, and a proposed trans-Himalayan road linking Arunachal Pradesh, Bhutan, Kathmandu and Patna can ensure better connectivity. However, people in some States such as Meghalaya had reservations about having rail connectivity.

Focusing on environmental concerns he mentioned that the largest number of endemic species in the country is found in the Northeast. It is considered as a biodiversity hotspot, and people have to be careful about effects of climatic and environmental changes. Cataloguing of flora and fauna in this part of the world is a vital necessity.

He further said that there should be scrutiny of anti-development activities. While some projects have been opposed by people where there is no scope of personal profit, some activities like illegal coal mining in Meghalaya have the tacit approval of those who own such mining areas.

Several books were released on the occasions, which include Holy Mother Sharada Devi, volume IX of Quest, Traditional System of the Dimasas, Traditional system      of the Nocte, Traditional System of the Tangsa and the Tutsa, Development Through Culture, among others.

Members of the Nocte Community from Tirap in Arunachal Pradesh performed some rituals related to their traditions. The presentations showcased important ceremonies related to traditional Nocte way of life.