By Enaxi Saikia BaruaGuwahati, Jan 14 (PTI) If you were in Assam, you wouldhave virtually seen London's Tower Bridge, the Eiffel Tower,the India Gate or the Red Fort.
There's more. One would have even come across Iceland'sigloos and the 9/11 twin towers in the US and recreation ofthe crash-landing of a plane carrying the then prime ministerMorarjee Desai in a paddy field at a village in Jorhatdistrict 40 years ago. Both Desai and the then ArunachalPradesh chief minister P K Thungon escaped unhurt.
These are all themes of 'bhelaghars' for the harvestfestival Bhogali or Magh Bihu in Assam.
The traditional conical makeshift huts 'bhelaghars' or'mejis' made of bamboo, leaves and thatch for Bhogali feastsBihu this year saw these new motifs.
Themes on burning issues concerning Assam such as savingthe rhino, the river Brahmaputra, environment, recurringfloods, among others, were also taken up to raise awareness,organisers across the state said.
Local news television channels have announced 'bestbhelaghar' competitions and selfies in front of them.
With the granaries full after a good harvest people onthe first day, 'Uruka' celebrations of Bhogali were heldacross the state last night.
People from all communities irrespective of caste, faith,ethnicity or language in a spirit of brotherhood gather toparticipate in the celebrations by building the structure toprepare the local delicacies of fish and meat for a grandfeast inside the mejis in the open farm fields.
Ruhini Gogoi, an organiser of the Morarjee Desai planecrash bhelaghar, said "We took this theme to tell the newgeneration about the five IAF elite Communication Squadronpilots who made the supreme sacrifice in saving the life ofthe then prime minister Morarji Desai.""A tree was planted then by the villagers at the crashsite to mark the area. We thought of commemorating theoccasion now on its 40th year by making a life size structureof that 1970s version of Air India One plane," Gogoi said.
One of the organisers of the Tower Bridge meji in Nalbaridistrict said he visited London last year and wanted thepeople of his home town to see what it looked like and sosuggested construction of its replica.
The initial budget was Rs 5 lakh but had doubled now andtook nearly 15 days to construct it and decorate it withcoloured light fittings, he said.
People of Basugaon in Chirang district made a replica ofthe Big Ben clock tower.
A replica of the two-storied Rang Ghar was built inSivasagar where the original oldest surviving amphitheatre inAsia exists.
Rang Ghar built by Ahom kings in the 18th century hadserved as a royal sports-pavilion for royalty and nobles towitness games like buffalo fights and other sports at RupahiPathar.
India Gate and Red Fort in Delhi, ancient temples, 9/11twin towers with the plane hitting one of the buildings alongwith traditional house styles of the different ethnic groupsof the state have also been showcased as bhelaghars.
A full size train with an engine with compartments wherepeople can sit was made at Boralipothar in Gohpur district tothe joy of young children.
In the hill district of Karbi Anglong a 'SaveBrahmaputra' from pollution theme was adopted at Howraghat,while locals at Demow in Sivasagar and Nagaon's Amonisalichose 'Save Kaziranga' theme to create awareness aboutpreserving its flora and fauna with models of rhinos, tigers,peacocks, etc.
A made-to-scale model of France's Eiffel Tower wasconstructed at Dhupdhora in Goalpara district where anotherbhelaghar depicting the man-elephant conflict was made with anelephant destroying a thatch house.
In Golaghat district's Merapani bordering Nagaland, thetheme was Iceland with igloos, sledges drawn by animals,leafless tress and ice skaters, while at another place a giantsized model from the Gulliver's Travels was the choice.
The people in Lakhimpur district, worst affected by therecurring annual floods, chose deluge as their theme tohighlight their sufferings during the monsoons.
After last night's merry-making and feasting, thebhelaghars and mejis were set ablaze to the chanting ofprayers appealing to the fire god (Agni) not to causedestruction during the coming dry months. PTI ESBZMN.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.