DIBRUGARH, June 23 - The Borbhuin Chetia Gaon and Teporchali Bam under Dhemechi Gaon Panchayat in the district have jointly managed to attract prestigious �Homen Borgohain Green Award� for their conservation of a folk of oriental pied hornbills there.
The award comprised of a citation, two �Safuras� and a cash of Rs 20,000. The representatives of both the villages received the award at a function held at Dhakuakhana College recently. The award has been introduced for the first time by the Homen Borgohain Trust, Assam.
Arnav Saikia, a noted writer of Golaghat and a persistent crusader of �Save Deopahar Movement� in Golaghat, was the donor of Homen Borgohain Green Award. He said that he will continue the tradition of offering the award throughout his life in the name of the master litterateur Homen Borgohain to the person, institution or organisation having remarkable contribution towards conservation of nature in Assam.
The jubilant villagers during a meeting held at Teporchali Bam LP School yesterday expressed their happiness over receiving the award and resolved to carry forward their joint effort. Suryya Kumar Chetia, trustee of the Assam Bandhu Trust, Assistant Professor of the Assam Women�s University, Jorhat, and a resident of Borbhuin Chetia Gaon said that the award to both the villages has further bolstered and encouraged the villagers to dedicate themselves for the conservation efforts.
�We are glad that our efforts have been recognised. We are grateful to the Homen Borgohain Trust for offering the award to us,� said Hemanta Chetia, one of the villagers. �Assam Bandhu� has been leading in the conservation activities of oriental pied hornbills in the area.
The activists of the organisation created awareness among the villagers so that they did not kill or threatened the birds. They have also urged upon the villagers not to cut trees in the villages where the birds make their nests. Now, the trust is undertaking a plan of planting saplings of fruit bearing trees in the area for the birds.
Talking about the income generating activities in the two villages, Suryya Kumar Chetia said that the tradition of Eri-muga farms has the potential for economic growth. The Trust is planning to organise and assist the people involved in Eri-muga cultivation to start a small scale industry in Borbhuin Chetia Gaon, which he said would provide livelihood to several unemployed villagers in the area.
The meeting unanimously resolved to carry on with the awareness programmes in the villages of the area and to build a guest house for the visiting tourists.
