Krishna Manik Molsom

Sampari Hukumu Bodol is a partner organization of FST, and with FST’s support, is implementing a project for Restoration and Preservation of Vanishing Musical Motifs of Indigenous Tripura. The Molsom is one of the tribes selected as a part of this project. Says Fr. Joseph P. of Sampari – “Compared to the other tribes of Tripura, I have observed that the Molsom tribe prefers living in the interior areas, away from roads and highways. It was the first time through our project that any organization has worked with the Molsoms here…”

Traditional songs and musical instruments are slowly disappearing and many people have given up making these instruments. There remain only a few people who still possess this knowledge. Thus lamented Motra Molsom, an elderly Molsom from the Tuichlong village – “Before 1974, there still were some opportunities to showcase our culture. I myself led a cultural troupe to Delhi. But thereafter, the opportunities disappeared. After 1974,with the influx of refugee population, there began scarcity of food. In the struggle for food, culture was forgotten and it took a backseat. Our culture is now lost… Even the clothes that the women are wearing today are not made by us, but by ‘Bengalis’. We feel shy to go to cultural programmes as we do not have any dress of our own anymore. We need to preserve our culture and our customs regarding marriage, food, and indigenous health pratices etc., to show that we also belong to this State.”

Fr. Joseph writes about Krishna Manik Molsom from the same village and his evolution from a shy man lacking in confidence to a selected Radio artist -

“32 year old Krishna Manik hails from Tuichlong near Tuidu in Ampi area of Tripura. The village is very interior and he used to live with his wife and little son in his in-laws’ house. His only source of income was cutting bamboos from the jungle and selling them to people from Tuidu market who would buy them for generally a meagre price. With bamboo becoming scarce, life was getting difficult for Krishna and family. That was when in connection with our Motivation program for the Molsoms that we reached his village and discovered that Krishna was very talented in playing almost all the traditional musical instruments – chongpreng, sarinda, sumui and kham. We also found out that Krishna could make the instruments by carving wood. Krishna was selected to be on the training and then he was part of the musician team for the recording of the Molsom songs. We also presented Krishna to the Station Director of All India Radio. He took an audition and finding his talent, selected him as one of the radio artistes of Agartala. Krishna will get chance to play at regular intervals at the Agartala Radio station and get a modest fee for it too. Krishna has been inducted as a staff of Sampari Hukumu Bodol and resides now at Don Bosco Peace Centre where currently the office of Sampari Hukumu Bodol is located.”

We at FST are happy to be a part of such efforts and hope that similar success stories continue to emerge through the work of our partners!

The NE Millets Consultation

We collaborated with North East Network, Deccan Development Society and the Millets Network of India to hold a most interesting program – a NE Consultation on Millets on the 24th and 25th March at the ICAR Barapani Conference Hall.

We had little over 30  participants from 6 states of the region. What was interesting was that the participants cut across different sections of society and included, economists, agricultural scientists, nutritionists, farmers practising millet cultivation in Andhra Pradesh and Meghalaya and representatives of NGOs working directly and indirectly on natural resource management and food security linked issues.

At the end of the two days I think we were able to sense a small but significant shift in attitudes towards millets. There was an appreciation of its relevance and potential as a nutritious food that was and still is, part of the traditional food culture of the parts of the NE; an agreement of the need to study and understand why millets are slowly disappearing from the plates of the people;  an understanding of the versatility of this crop in adapting to climate change, grow quickly in harsh conditions and add to the food security of our region; a realisation of the need to advocate for inclusion of millets into the PDS and in the Mid Day Meal Schemes as well in the proposed National Food Security Act.

The participants agreed to take steps at different levels to revive interest and cultivation of this crop in the north east region. This will include research studies, writing articles and sharing information, p

A formal report is being drafted and will be formally pubished by DDS whose amazing Community Media Trust team documented the entire proceedings More information is available at the websites of DDS and MINI at www.milletindia.org, www.ddsindia.com .

ICT Training

We organised an intensive two day inhouse workshop on Information and Communication Technology at FST on the 26th and 27th February 2010.

Gayatri Buragohain of Feminist Approach to Technology (FAT) conducted the training. Her enthusiasm and eagenerness was infectious as she walked us through the different uses of computers , both online and offline in optimising our work.  We tried our hand at setting up Google Calendars and using Google Documents. W

We introspected about our current website and agreed that it needed a makeover really fast.  We learnt a little about content management systems and how to resize photographs and upload on blogs…. but I guess it will take a lot of practice before we become experts at it.

Till then we shall just keep on trying, as I am now….

Brief view of Brahmaputra

Group Members: Ms. Anupama Das, MS. Anu Gaya, Ms. MaryBeth Sanate, Ms. Rajesh Debbarma, Mr. James, Ms Lalthanzami & Mr. Apoorv

Outward appearance/Scene

The site is crowded with people riding on boats, older people arriving on the shore with typical traditional dresses on holiday, people relaxing from the temple adjacent to the river, young people hanging out, children playing beside the river, washing and bathing in the river, street vendors selling varieties of things and people living besides the streets. The classical and modern music heard from a distance and the crows looking for a food.

Decorated ferry boats parked beside the river with boatmen around waiting for the passengers. These workers perform their daily routine on these boats, washing utensils, clothes and bathing inside the water.

Loud noise of the water flow is heard close by. The dirty water and the garbage dump close to the river, comes from the temple backyard. This temple sewage and waste water collects in the drains and flows into the water. Small children living close to the temple, play with the waste water and the garbage dump coming from the city.

The river serves as an important as lifeline for
people and is an important place for relaxation,spiritualism & economic purpose.
The contrast in life of the people can be seen in the park relaxing, interacting
with each other and meditating while others who cannot afford to sit
below the park, wander around, children, homeless people sit by the
riverside/mothers while taking care of their daily chores also take care
of the children who play around.

Its beauty and historical significance

Despite the crowded and dirty water and it’s surrounding, the river has its own beauty that lies in its legends. The river is the symbol of cultural and religious identity of India especially for the NE. Example can be seen in the painting of the battle of Saraighat near the temple.

Home for many

The Brahmaputra seem to be the home for many people like Mrs. Meena whose husband left her with three small children. For the three children, Brahmaputra site has been a home where they play, eat and sleep peacefully never experiencing the life of being in a decent house. It’s a home for mentally challenge and people without proper home. People who have compassion for the homeless distributing food and warm clothes to the people living close to the Brahmaputra

The Brahmaputra seem to be the home for many people like Mrs. Meena whose husband left her with three small children. For the three children Bramaputra site has been a home where they play, eat and sleep peacefully never experiencing the life of being in a decent house. It’s a home for mentally challenge and people without proper home. People who have compassion for the homeless distributing food and warm clothes to the people living close to the Brahmaputra

Source of livelihood for thousands

We can see Brahmaputra provides an opportunity for people to earn by providing boat rides, selling of coconuts, running a small shops, dhobi job, restaurant, fishing, etc. For these people the river is a life sustainer.

SNEHABANHDAN

 The team members were: Father Thomas, John Yengkhom,M.S Dawngliana, Prosper S marak,Tapan, Mukul,Swarnalata, Christine, Bibha

The Swarna Group of FST partners visited a students’ hostel for their experimental study.  The team reached at 1.45 pm and stayed for an hour.

What we saw were a few children in the room watching TV, and most of the time, a few boys playing around with some dogs. It seemed that the only entertainment that the children had was the TV and the dogs.

The only source of water was a tube well, and the students have no separate hall for the dormitory or study. The warden remains with the students all through the day and night. He does the marketing for them.  

The  senior children wash the clothes and help the younger ones, as leaders. They help the others by organizing their work, like cleaning the campus and cooking. They have very plain meals, of  rice, vegetables and lentils. The children were happy, and they had a good fellowship among themselves.

They were handling the TV and VCD player on their own. They have very simple residence and facilities. Even the house is inexpensive, the roof made of bamboo and CI sheets.

The young children have classes in Mathematics, English and ethics taken by an experienced teacher, Bobita. They also have a counselor to assist in their growth.

The lives by the Brahmaputra

Group Members: Ms. Ranjita, Mr. Narendra Deb Barma, Ms Shreyoshi, Ms Awon, Sobita, A Sen Jamir, Dr. Shreelekha Ray, Ms. Isabella.

The winter afternoon was made perfect with the soft sun, the mist and the cool breeze and the glittering river by the side in all its glory.

A stroll off the regular track leads us to the vicinity of the boating junction. The almost surreal beauty of the shimmering river and the bountiful green and the noise, commotion and pollution of the city life- what a harsh contrast in every frame!

The overcrowded buses brimming with people struggle to move ahead, but their ways are blocked by the shabby autorichshaws and the always- in- a- rush bikers. The footpath too, has many stories to tell, of the many invisible lives that are led in the quiet and dark, hidden behind the trees and gray walls. One such woman is Mina, a tea-garden worker whose husband deserted her and their three daughters. The twisted workings of fate then landed her in the banks of Bramhaputra. However, her face still holds on to a smile as she describes the girls, the oldest of five and the youngest being just two and half. The strength of human hope at the face of adversity is always a surprise.

At the gate of the boating complex, the boatmen who are trying to lure us away with their low rates and schemes greet us. The busy juncture has people rushing in and out, families and businessmen, homeless children and teenagers. The busy city life and the calm winter what an interesting play of images…

We move ahead and sit on the steps to watch the people in their daily whereabouts. A little girl who was playing in the corner, rushes to us in a sudden bout of excitement. Dirty oversized clothes and running noses, but not a care in the world… she is blissfully unaware of the life she leads and the life she deserves. She shows off a handful of coins with a broad mischievous smile and looks at us expectantly. There is no reaction, but she patiently waits, holding on to her expression. After a little while the call of her friends divert her and she heads back to her friends and her playthings, the mid and leftover garbage on the banks.

Our eyes then move on ahead to the vast open stretch ahead leading up to the boats. The area is strewn with plastic wastes and leftover items carelessly dumped by the unaware everyday passengers. Packets of chips and mouth fresheners, straws and paper plates greet us every step of the way to the boat. It bothers no one, no one seems aware of the harm they will cause. A deep breath and we step into the boat and move to the next destination.