The Nagaland government has decided to take the Hornbill Festival, a globally recognised event showcasing the Naga culture, across India and abroad.

Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio made the announcement while tabling the 2022-23 budget in the Assembly on Tuesday.

“The Task Force for Music & Arts (TAFMA) has been doing commendable work and will launch Hornbill on Tour during the year. This will take Nagaland’s most well-known intellectual property — the Hornbill Festival — to different parts of the country and beyond,” Rio said in his budget speech.

TAFMA is a Nagaland government initiative to promote music and arts professionally in the state. A key feature of the annual 10-day Hornbill Festival is its musical acts, which see participation of both locals and international bands. It is one of the most awaited events of the year among music lovers and tourists.

Government sources said the details of the Hornbill on Tour initiative would be worked out in due course.

Launched in 2000 to showcase the best of Naga food, songs, dance, games, arts and craft from December 1 to 10 at the Naga Heritage Village in Kisama, 12km from Kohima, the festival is a huge money spinner given the footfall it attracts from across India and abroad.

Though the last edition held after a gap of a year due to pandemic had to be suspended after five days because of the Oting massacre that left 14 civilians dead in a botched counter-insurgency operation, the 2019 edition had witnessed record turnout — 2.69 lakh, including 3,015 foreigners, 55,584 domestic tourists and over 2 lakh locals. The footfall was 2.51 lakh in 2018.

The importance of the festival and the tourism sector was also reflected in Rio’s speech, which emphasised on an early solution to the Indo-Naga political issue, justice for the Oting victims and schemes for welfare of youths and farmers, among others.

Rio said: “The tourism sector has the scope to improve our economy, generate employment and promote Brand Nagaland to international audiences. The engagement of entrepreneurs, event companies and service providers in our tribal festivals, which culminates in the Hornbill Festival, exemplifies the energy and vibrancy of our youth. The department of tourism has been provided with an enhanced allocation of Rs 9 crore for the Hornbill Festival, conduct of tribal festivals, re-construction of Hotel Fira and for core activities.”

Rio added: “Our tourism policy and approach are to strike the right balance between cultural preservation and promotion of popular culture in a way that creates opportunities for all sections while ensuring the real stakeholders are benefited. In addition to new tourism events, with special focus on experiential tourism, the government will be supporting development of Nagaland as an off-roading destination in collaboration with Wander Beyond Boundaries....”

Nagaland will be setting up a new a Centre of Excellence for Music & Arts in Kohima where art, innovation and creativity will thrive, enabling us to propel our youths towards international standards, Rio said.

One of the key announcements in the budget, the last one before next year’s Assembly polls, was the Chief Minister’s Micro Finance Initiative to be launched during the year. The scheme, Rio said, would make credit more affordable and available to individuals, self-help groups and farmer producer organisations.

“Through this scheme, I hope to increase farmers’ incomes, promote credit discipline, encourage private enterprise and improve the agri marketing network and infrastructure in our state. As part of this initiative to promote the agri and allied sector, I propose to remove the stamp duty on crop loans to be notified shortly,” Rio said.