The National People’s Party (NPP), Nagaland State Unit, has urged the Government of Nagaland to introduce a Summer Festival as a complementary event to the world-renowned Hornbill Festival, with the aim of transforming Nagaland into a year-round tourist destination and generating sustainable livelihoods for its people.
In a statement issued by its Media and IPR Cell, the NPP said that while the Hornbill Festival, celebrated every December, has established Nagaland as a vibrant cultural hub and premier tourist destination, tourism in the State remains largely seasonal, restricting economic opportunities to a short period of time each year.
“The seasonal nature of tourism not only limits economic benefits but also results in neglect of roads and infrastructure until the next tourist season,” the statement said.
The party maintained that introducing a Summer Festival would promote tourism across all seasons, ensuring a balanced inflow of visitors throughout the year and encouraging continuous maintenance of roads and public infrastructure.
Highlighting the tourism trends in the North Eastern region, the NPP noted that States like Sikkim, Meghalaya, and Assam are witnessing significant tourism-driven income even during the summer months.
“Introducing a Summer Festival in Nagaland will attract more visitors during this period, boosting the State’s economy and creating greater self-employment opportunities for youth, which is the need of the hour,” it stated.
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According to the NPP, the proposed Summer Festival would serve multiple purposes—ensure a steady flow of visitors, reducing seasonality, thus giving year-round tourism boost; boost infrastructure as roads and facilities would be maintained regularly in view of consistent tourist activity; and also provide opportunities for artisans, entrepreneurs, home stays, transporters and performers to earn livelihood.
The party said that while Hornbill focuses on winter celebrations, a Summer Festival could highlight agriculture, eco-tourism, monsoon festivities, and Christian-centered spiritual gathering, besides festival can be decentralized to districts beyond Kohima, promoting inclusive growth across Nagaland.
The party emphasized that such a festival could feature eco-tourism activities like trekking, fishing, and bird-watching, alongside organic food and indigenous cuisine fairs, music concerts, youth talent showcases, and traditional games. It also proposed faith-based sessions, such as prayer and healing meetings, gospel concerts, and inter-church gatherings to strengthen unity, peace, and Christian values among the people.
“The establishment of a Summer Festival, alongside the Hornbill Festival, will not only make Nagaland a year-round tourism destination but also reaffirm the State’s Christian identity,” the NPP stated. “This initiative will contribute to sustained economic growth while uplifting the moral and spiritual fabric of society.”
The party appealed to the Government of Nagaland to consider the proposal with utmost priority, describing it as being in the larger interest of the people and a crucial step toward promoting Nagaland as a global tourism hotspot rooted in its Christian ethos.
