Solung, the harvest festival of Arunachal Pradesh kicks off

Itanagar: Celebrated in the first week of September, 'SOLUNG' is a popular festival of the Adi Tribe of Arunachal Pradesh. It is a harvest festival performed after sowing of seeds and transplantation, to seek for future bumper crops. Ponung songs and dances are performed by womenfolk during the festival. The main celebrations of Solung are in three parts: Sopi-Yekpi (the sacrificial day), Binnayat (the ritual offering to the goddess of crops, Kine Nane) and Ekop, also called as Taktor (the ritual made for protection against harms by evil spirits). However, this year, the festival could not be observed like the previous years. The festival has been celebrated at Pasighat with great enthusiasm and fanfare amid COVID 19 pandemic while following COVID SoP. Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister, Pema Khandu conveyed his best wishes to the people of the Adi community during the occasion.