Dance festival promotes national integration in Kargil

October 12th, 2009 GUWAHATI - Hundreds of tribes belonging to various Assamese groups, including Bodo, Mising, Rabha, Tiwa, Deori, showcased their culture and tradition through dance, music and food at the three-day ethnic festival, 'Aikyatan.' Organized by the Directorate of Cultural Affairs, Assam, the festival concluded on Sunday. Ethnic groups from central and eastern parts of the country also participated in the festival.

October 10th, 2009 RANCHI - Tribal men and women near Ranchi recently celebrated their annual cultural festival with pomp and gaiety. The two-day cultural festival called 'Murma festival' was celebrated at Murmu subdivision, 30 kilometers from Ranchi.

September 27th, 2009 AHMEDABAD - People in Ahmedabad enjoyed the traditional vibrant folk dance of Garba with full fervour on the eighth day of Navartri. Clad in traditional colourful dresses with a lot of mirror and handwork, boys and girls danced to the fullest enjoying every moment of the festival on Saturday.

September 23rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - President Pratibha Patil today called on youth to concentrate on acquiring new skills and knowledge which can be used for the welfare of the people. Speaking after presenting the Rashtrapati Scouts and Guides Award Certificates at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan here, President Patil said advances in science and technology have opened new areas of activities and new fields of knowledge.

September 19th, 2009 RAJKOT - With the outset of 'Navaratri' starting from Saturday, women of all age groups are practicing the traditional Indian folk dance, 'Garba', with a view to perform during the most celebrated dance festival in Rajkot and Ahmedabad. The nine-day festival observes musical groups getting ready for cultural programmes like the Garba dance across the country.

September 14th, 2009 SHIMLA - A five-day folk dance competition began here on Monday, with dancers from the country and abroad participating. The objective of the festival, which has girls participating from 2400 schools and colleges, is to revive Indian culture and promote women empowerment.

September 6th, 2009 TRICHUR - Performers dressed as tigers and danced in the traditional Pulikali, or tiger dance, here on Saturday marking the end of the annual harvest festival, "Onam". The harvest festival of Onam is the season for staging some of the dying traditional folk dances in the tourist hotspot of Kerala.

July 26th, 2009 SRINAGAR - Homage was paid to the martyrs of the 1999 Kargil conflict at the Drass war memorial in Ladakh Sunday. Officers and jawans, as well as families of many of the martyrs, laid wreaths at the war memorial in the morning.

June 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Artistes from Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Sikkim and Assam danced to the sounds of the Dhol, Khol, Jhal and flute at the Festival of Traditional Dance and Music of Northeast held in Delhi's Kamani auditorium recently. One of the highlights of the festival was the Reang dance of Tripura and the Cheraw of Mizoram.

May 24th, 2009 SIKKIM - Assam Linzey in Sikkim celebrated Sakewa, a festival to offer tribute to Mother Earth on Saturday. Sakewa is held as a community prayer and during this festival sweets and food grains are offered to Lord Kubera, who is the God of food and wealth.

May 15th, 2009 SHILLONG - As part of a movement to preserve the culture and tradition of the Khasis, the annual Lympung festival, a dance fiesta was held in Shillong recently. The event provided a platform to showcase traditional dances and other cultural activities.

March 12th, 2009 LEH - Masked dancers in colourful silk robes enticed spectators at the annual Matho Nagrang festival at the Matho Monastery here recently. Celebrated on the 14 and 15th day of the first month of the Tibetan calendar, the festival is a colourful affair where monks dressed in masks depicting various gods and goddesses perform a dance in the courtyard of the monastery in front of hundreds of devotees.

January 23rd, 2009 BHOPAL - A large number of foreign filmmakers are expected to participate in the International Tribal Film Festival being organised here from March 20 with a view to preserve and promote tribal culture, officials said here Saturday. The three-day event to be hosted by the state's Tribal Welfare Department would include screening of films on the life of tribal people.

January 15th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - The United Nations will partner Kerala at a week-long Nishagandi Festival beginning here Jan 20. 'This is the first time that the UN is partnering an event in South India,' State Tourism Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan told reporters.

January 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Listen to some soulful melodies from the hills of Meghalaya, enjoy the graceful 'Bihu' dance of Assam, stuff your shopping bags with wares from the northeast, and titillate your taste buds with delicacies of the region. In short, get set to feel the northeastern spirit right here from Saturday on.