Tripura, Meghalaya, Manipur celebrate 51st Statehood Day

Agartala/Shillong/Imphal, Jan 21 (IANS) Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur on Friday separately celebrated their 51st Statehood Day by holding numerous colourful cultural programmes and other functions.

In the poll-bound Tripura and Meghalaya, the Statehood Day functions were low key and the ministers and politicians did not attend the celebrations due to the model code of conduct.

President Droupadi Murmu, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, BJP President J.P. Nadda and several Union ministers and Chief Ministers of the neighbouring northeastern states greeted the people of the three states on the occasion.

Congratulating the people of the three states, the Prime Minister, in separate tweets, said: "On their Statehood Day, best wishes to the people of Tripura. The last 5 years have been remarkable for Tripura's growth trajectory. From agriculture to industry, education to health, the state has seen great transformation. May this trend continue in the coming times."

"Greetings to the people of Meghalaya on their Statehood Day. This state is known for its vibrant culture, particularly music, art and passion towards sports. People from Meghalaya have excelled in diverse fields. I pray for Meghalaya's continuous progress in the years to come," Modi said.

In another tweet, the PM said: "Statehood Day greetings to the people of Manipur. The state has been progressing on several counts during the last few years. I pray that the aspirations of the people of this state are fulfilled and Manipur keeps strengthening India's growth trajectory."

In Tripura, the Day's main function was held in Agartala in which Chief Secretary J.K. Sinha, Director General of Police Amitabh Ranjan, Vice-Chancellor of Maharaja Bir Bikram University Satadeo Poddar among others participated in the celebration organised by the Information and Cultural Affairs department at the Rabindra Satabarshiki Bhavan.

In Meghalaya, state governor B.D. Mishra handed over the Meghalaya Day excellence awards on the occasion at a function at U. Soso Tham auditorium in Shillong.

A glittering cultural programme was organised by the Department of Art and Culture in the city on the occasion of the 51st Meghalaya Day.

In Manipur, the main function of the Statehood Day was held at the 1st Battalion Manipur Rifles Parade Ground in Imphal.

Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister N. Biren Singh said that the state has been able to attract a large number of domestic and foreign tourists.

He informed that many visitors had acknowledged the progress and development of the State.

Singh said that the state will be holding events in connection with G20 and the Grand Finale of Femina Miss India this year.

He said that his government aims to bring governance and development in far-flung rural and hill areas to redress their grievances and provide services to the people at their doorsteps.

Raising concern about large-scale deforestation, the Chief Minister informed that a mass tree plantation campaign would be organised from March to July this year.

The erstwhile princely states of Tripura and Manipur were merged into the Indian Union in October 1949 and became full-fledged states on January 21, 1972. Meghalaya was part of Assam before becoming a full-fledged state on the same day.

All the three northeastern states became full-fledged states under the North Eastern Region (Re-Organisation) Act, 1971.

All the three northeastern states have taken a series of programmes to celebrate the day and announced a slew of welfare programmes and various plans to develop these states in future.