Assam: Calendar Marks April 15 as 'Bengali New Year', Forgets Bihu

Jorhat, January 19, 2020:

Amid rising apprehensions that Bengali will replace Assamese as the dominant language within the territorial area of Assam after the dawning of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, a calendar has arrived that will undoubtedly send shivers down the spine of the Assamese people.

The calender in question, printed by the New Alo-Chhaya situated at Gar Ali in Jorhat, raised a hue-and-cry after it was found that the calendar, in its list of holidays, shows 14 and 15 April as the 'Bengali New Year'. However, somewhat shockingly, Bihu, the cultural festival of Assam, does not find a place in this calendar.

ALSO READ: Assam: Several Thousand Morans Rally against CAA in Tinsukia

"Yesterday, New Alo-Chhaya in Gar Ali, to wish New Year and promote their business establishment, printed a Bengali-language calendar. We went to the establishment and told him to collect the calendars that have been distributed. In the calendar, it was seen that in the list of holidays, they have attempted to destroy Assam's culture and identity", said a member of the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chhatra Parishad (AJYCP), an indigenous student body.

Earlier in the day, members of the student body barged into the establishment and seized several calendars and urged the owner not to attempt to dilute the "culture" of Assam by feigning ignorance.

ALSO READ: Konyak Tribe of Nagaland Makes it to Cover of Spanish Magazine ‘XL Semanal’

Last month, in a similar incident, students of an Assamese-medium school in Golaghat were left in bewilderment when their marksheet came printed in the Bangla language.

Students of an Assamese-medium Primary school at Mautgaon in Golaghat received marksheets that were printed in the Bangla language, a few days after they had appeared for an exam, drawing condemnation from the locals.

These incidents have added fuel to the fire of the apprehensions against the CAA that seeks to naturalize non-Muslim migrants from neighboring countries, including Bangladesh, which shares porous borders with Assam and other Northeast Indian states.

Support Inside Northeast (InsideNE), an independent media platform that focuses on Citizen-centric stories from Northeast India that are surprising, inspiring, cinematic and emotionally relevant.