YARDEN JAMIR | Mokokchung | January 17
After a gap of 75 years since it last hosted it, Akhoya village is set to host a general conference of the apex Ao Kaketshir Mungdang (AKM) for the second time now. Akhoya is a comparatively small village in the Langpangkong range of Mokokchung district near Changtongya Town. The village is endowed with a rich cultural heritage and has produced a galaxy of luminaries in various fields and professions.
The 69th general conference of the Ao Students’ Conference, or AKM, will commence today (18th January) and will be hosting a total of 1,500 delegates from six ranges and various sub-units of AKM along with hundreds of guests, invitees, and well-wishers.
Speaking to Mokokchung Times, Satemmongba, President of Akhoya Students’ Union said that the first AKM conference in the village was held from 28th December 1947 to 1st January 1948 which was the 12th general conference of the AKM. He expressed his gratitude to the AKM officials and the Ao community at large for giving the honor to the village to host the conference for the second time.
“During the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of the Akhoya Students Union in the year 2016, we had envisioned hosting the Langpangkong Students Conference in the year 2019 and the Ao Students’ Conference in the year 2023,” Satemmongba said.
“Even though Akhoya is not a big village, we wanted to relieve the burden of hosting the conference from the bigger villages,” he said, adding that the aim is also to motivate and encourage the other smaller villages to also take the steps to host the conferences.
Hosting the 3-day conference, he said, will be an act of gratitude to the Ao community for providing many privileges and opportunities to the village of Akhoya. He also hoped that the conference hosted in their village will bear fruitful resolutions by bringing various agendas and suggestions to the leaders by the student community to pave the way for the betterment of society.
Imkongsunep, Convener of the local Planning Committee, told this newspaper that the planning process for the conference started right after the previous conference in Khar village in the year 2020 but due to the pandemic, the various committees were constituted later.
He said that the village habitation has only 150 households but the two wards in Changtongya Town which comes under the territory of the Akhoya village will also host the delegates along with the village proper.
Meanwhile, the president of AKM, Nungdokyanger Ao, stated that, “with the grace of God, the conference preparation is proceeding smoothly.”
He said that the AKM officials have already reached the village and are camping there and that the conference delegates will arrive Wednesday.
The triennial conference will be held on the theme “Education in Praxis” from 18-20 January 2022, with the inaugural guest being Nagaland Minister of Housing and Mechanical, Tongpang Ozukum.