Thousands of Naga people, including women and children, on Wednesday accorded a rousing welcome to NSCN-IM General Secretary Thuingaleng Muivah in Manipur’s Ukhrul district headquarters.

Nonagenarian Naga leader Muivah, also the Ato Kilonser (Prime Minister) of the Isak-Muivah faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN-IM), arrived in the Naga-inhabited Ukhrul district to visit his birthplace, Somdal village, for the first time in 50 years.

Thousands of Nagas from all walks of life, dressed in traditional attire and carrying NSCN-IM flags, greeted Muivah after his helicopter landed at Bakshi Ground in the district headquarters from Nagaland’s Dimapur.

From there, he proceeded to a stage specially set up to accord him a grand reception.

A large number of Naga men, holding traditional spears and wearing customary headgears, turned up at the venue to welcome Muivah, the key negotiator in the Naga peace talks with the Union government since the NSCN-IM entered into a ceasefire in 1997.

The Influential Naga body Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) organised all arrangements for the much-anticipated visit of Muivah and his associates to Ukhrul district.

The NSCN-IM General Secretary is expected to stay for about a week in Somdal village, his first visit since joining the Naga movement five decades ago.

Several senior NSCN-IM leaders accompanied Muivah to the Tangkhul Naga-inhabited district. The entire Tangkhul Naga community is abuzz with excitement as they welcome one of the most significant figures in Naga history back to his homeland after decades of struggle for the Naga cause.

Vice President of TNL and Co-Convener of the Organising Committee R.S. Jollyson supervised the arrangements for the grand reception.

“The occasion marks not only the homecoming of a leader but also the homecoming of history, rekindling the collective spirit and unity of the Naga people,” Jollyson told the media.

Local residents and various organisations have put up posters, decorative gates, and hoardings across Ukhrul and Senapati districts, including Somdal village, welcoming the 91-year-old NSCN-IM leader, who left his village more than five decades ago to join the insurgency for the Naga cause.

Village authorities in Tangkhul Naga-majority areas, along with youth and student bodies, civil society organisations, and the influential church, are jointly taking all possible steps to ensure the success of the Naga leader’s visit.

The Tangkhul Nagas are the largest Naga tribe in Manipur. After the colourful mega reception at Ukhrul district headquarters, Muivah left for his native Somdal village, about 25 kms away.

A government official said a helipad has been constructed at Somdal for the arrival of the veteran Naga leader, who is likely to stay there for a week before returning to Dimapur via Manipur’s Senapati district on October 29.

Muivah’s earlier visit to Ukhrul district in 2010 was opposed by certain quarters and the then state government on security grounds, but there has been no objection this time.

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Born in 1934, Muivah’s name is synonymous with the contemporary Naga political movement. He remains one of the most influential and powerful Naga leaders.

Several organisations from the Kuki, Zomi, and Meitei communities in Manipur have also welcomed Muivah’s visit.

Of Manipur’s 16 districts, the Naga-inhabited ones are Tamenglong, Chandel, Ukhrul, Kamjong, Noney, and Senapati, all located along the Nagaland and Myanmar borders.

Muivah’s much-anticipated visit comes at a time when Manipur continues to recover from the ethnic violence between the non-tribal Meiteis and Kuki-Zo tribal groups that erupted in May 2023.

More than 260 people from both communities have been killed, and around 70,000 displaced in the conflict.

Widespread destruction of government and private properties, including religious establishments, has also been reported across 10 of Manipur’s 16 districts.

Following months of unrest, President’s Rule was imposed in Manipur on February 13, four days after Chief Minister N. Biren Singh resigned from his post.