Tendong Lho Rum Faat celebrated at Nali Partam

DICHEN ONGMU

GANGTOK,: The two-day celebration of Tendong Lho Rum Faat, a major Lepcha community festival, concluded on Monday at Nali Partam, Lingee in Namchi district.
Addressing the gathering, minister K.N. Lepcha extended his best wishes to the Lepcha community for Tendong Lho Rum Faat on behalf of Chief Minister P.S. Golay who could not make it to the celebration due to the sudden official tour of Delhi.
“The festival was scheduled to be observed here at Lingee under the direction of the Chief Minister who was keen to attend and celebrate with the Lepcha tribal community living across the nation and abroad. Due to sudden official reason he could not make it here. He has assured to visit the public of Lingee soon and address their issues and grievances”, informed Lepcha.
The minister shared about the initiatives taken by the Chief Minister to promote and preserve the culture and tradition of various communities of Sikkim. He expressed his concern on the younger generation forgetting their roots as they are more interested in adopting modern lifestyle.
“The elders should encourage a sense of belonging among the young generation and make them preserve the language, culture and tradition of their respective communities”, urged Lepcha.  He also expressed his happiness to see the attendance of all the communities residing in the State which shows unity in diversity.
Minister Samdup Lepcha, also the celebration committee chairman, highlighted the importance of the Tendong Lho Rum Faat festival. In the tenure of SKM government we are celebrating this festival in an inclusive manner where we can witness participation from all the communities across the State, said Lepcha.
“We could have celebrated this day at Tendong Hill in Namchi but the Chief Minister insisted to celebrate at Lingee this year since he wanted to promote this place where Lepcha population reside in large numbers after North Sikkim”, added Lepcha.
Expressing his sadness over the present generation unable to communicate in their tribal language, the minister urged them to focus in learning their language and promoting their culture and tradition as they are the future of their respective communities.
The programme also witnessed holy rituals performed by the Lepcha priests Bongthings and felicitations to eminent personalities for their outstanding contributions in various fields followed by release of a Lepcha book and a Lepcha movie Myth and colourful cultural performances.