Arunachal research team from Rajiv Gandhi University on unsung heroes reaches London

OUR CORRESPONDENT

ITANAGAR: In its endeavor to give the unsung heroes of Arunachal their due recognition, a six-member team of research scholars from the Rajiv Gandhi University (RGU) and officials from the state government arrived in London on Thursday to carry out research, collect archival materials and documents from various institutes of the city.

The team's visit to London, the largest city of the United Kingdom, is a part of the ongoing research and documentation process on 'Unsung Heroes of Arunachal Pradesh' which is spearheaded by Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein. The initiative, besides being a part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, is also an effort of the Arunachal Pradesh government to reconstruct the history of the frontier state.

The Deputy Chief Minister's office in a press release said that most of the records on the history of Arunachal Pradesh (erstwhile North Eastern Frontier Tracts) for the period ranging from 1792 to 1945 are available only in the form of proceedings, tour diaries, personal diaries, official correspondences, images, ethnographic data, etc. in different establishments and institutions of the United Kingdom. These critical documents and archival records of the resistance and struggle carried out by the Arunachalees against the British colonial rule for India's freedom were recorded only by the colonial administrators and their officials. These records are vital to reconstruct the history, culture and carry out credible ethnographic research of the different indigenous communities of the state, the press release said.

The six-member team, during their 18-day tour to the United Kingdom, would visit many prestigious institutes like the British Library, The National Archives, Royal Geographical Society, National Army Museum, School of Oriental and African Studies and the Pitt Rivers Museum in the University of Oxford to carry out their research and documentation works. The team consists of Professors Sarit Kumar Chaudhuri, Shyam Narayan Singh, Tana Showren and Ashan Riddi from the RGU, research scholar Nepha Wangsa and public relations officer to deputy chief minister Ajay Saring.

The Arunachal Pradesh government had in 2021 formed an Unsung Heroes Core Committee headed to conduct a research on the contribution of various personalities of the state in the country's freedom struggle. The committee has been tasked to collect and examine authentic documents, archives, journals, etc., available in libraries and other places, seek comments of eminent personalities and others in this regard, visit places of relevant historical interests and take steps as deemed fit to give recognition to the unsung freedom fighters of Arunachal. The committee with the support of Rajiv Gandhi University has so far identified 15 unsung heroes, 100 freedom fighters and 64 martyrs from various communities of Arunachal which have also been recognized by the Government of India.

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