FOUR-DAY CONVENTION BEGINS AT DUDHNOI
A view of the main gate of the conference. Picture by UB Photos
Dudhnoi, March 23: An artwork of a clenched fist, representing strength and unity, greets visitors to the All Assam Students' Union's Dudhnoi conference in Goalpara district that began today.
'The fist symbolises a strong bond. It is the need of the hour to bind different communities to create the greater Assamese society,' said artist Madhusudan Das, offering an insight into his creation.
Das's 'fist' closely resembles AASU's symbol. Around it, the artist has created symbols representing different communities to convey his thought more lucidly.
AASU president Sankar Prasad Rai said, 'The objective of the conference is to chalk out an outline on how to make Assam secure for the indigenous and Assamese people of the state.'
As AASU members have been working tirelessly for weeks to hold the convention, Das has also been busy creating some of the main attractions of the conference venue, including the main arch, the symbol and a model village, each carrying the message of importance of unity at a time when different communities are becoming more assertive of their identity.
Yesterday, apex literary bodies had decided to request the indigenous communities they represent not to list themselves as Assamese in the National Register of Citizens (NRC) or census.
Preparation on at the conference venue in Dudhnoi on Monday.
Picture by UB Photos
AASU leaders and workers hoped that the four-day convention, being held after 10 years, would bring together different communities of the state to build a greater Assamese society that to fight for their common causes.
'All we want is a united society. The message will also be reflected in tomorrow's cultural procession in which every community will display its cultural elements. Model houses of communities, along with statues of great personalities like Bhupen Hazarika, Pratima Pande Barua, Lachit Borphukan, Chilarai, Dodan Roja, Upen Brahma and Bishnu Rabha will be carried on trucks,' said Bhrigu Kumar Nath, secretary of AASU's cultural procession cell.
The conference began with the inauguration of the arch, which leads to the main conference venue, in the morning.
The arch has been designed like Surjya Pahar, a major tourist attraction in Goalpara district that houses sculptures of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.
The guesthouse, which replicates the house of Barua, the queen of Goalparia folk song, was also inaugurated.
Tomorrow, AASU president Sankar Prasad Rai will unfurl the organisation's flag. After this, AASU general secretary Tapan Gogoi will pay tribute to the 855 martyrs who laid down their lives during the six-year Assam Movement. Asam Sahitya Sabha president Dhruba Jyoti Borah will inaugurate a book fair and an exhibition at the venue.
Till this evening, very few participants had arrived for the book fair and the exhibition. Leaders of North East Students' Union (NESO) are scheduled to attend tomorrow's meeting.
The organisers have also put up a stall exclusively for Upendra rice products, a special category of paddy cultivated by Upendra Rabha, a farmer of the district, under the guidance of the state agricultural department.
The organisers were expecting around 5,000 participants.
'The number is likely to go up, but we are not worried. We have arrangements to accommodate them all,' said Malini Devi Rabha, chairman of the reception committee. A storm this evening partially damaged the guesthouse and the welcome gates.
