Zeliangrong Community Celebrated Gaan Ngai Festival in Manipur: In Manipur, the Zeliangrong Community’s Gaan Ngai was observed. The Gaan Ngai festival is one of the major festivals of Manipur which is celebrated every year after harvesting. The celebration also commemorates the harvest season when farmers have finished storing their crops in granaries for the year. During the festival, the Zeliangrong Community shows their gratitude by offering the Almighty a good harvest and praying for a better and prosperous life in the coming year.
January 2023 Current Affairs Quiz
It is a custom to produce new fire by rubbing dry wood and split bamboo pieces and distributing them to every household on the day of the festival to mark the beginning of the new year.
Gaan Ngai Festival: Relevance
It is a post-harvest festival known as Gaan Ngai. It is mainly performed by the followers and devotees of the Zeliangrong Indigenous religion of ‘Poupei Chapriak’ and ‘Heraka’.
Gaan Ngai Festival: Celebrations
Gaan Ngai is traditionally celebrated in the month of ‘Gaan-Bu’ of the indigenous calendar of the Rongmei Naga tribe which typically falls in the Gregorian month of November or December. Assam celebrates Gaan Ngai on the day determined by the local Rongmei Naga Calendar. In Manipur, Gaan Ngai is celebrated on the 13th day of the Manipur month of “Wakching” of the Meetei Manipur Calendar with the festival being a state holiday in Manipur.