Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, December 12 2008:
THE ROYAL Secretariat has today announced that it will ban priests (maiba-maibi) who do not posses certificates of participation in the refresher course conducted by the National Institute of Indigenous Culture from performing rituals at the Lai-haroaba.
Speaking at a press conference here at Royal Palace today, the publicity secretary of the Royal Secretariat, M Rajen said that due to the wrong rituals performed by the priests at the time of Umang Lai-haroaba, the turbulent prevailing in the present society have come up.
While announcing that the Rayal Palace has decided to ban the priests with no certificate of participation in the refresher course conducting four times in a year organized by the National Institute of Indigenous Culture with due consideration of the resolution passed by a two day long public discussion held on December 25 and 26 last year.
The public discussion resolved that all such indigenous rituals should be performed under the guidelines of the Royal Palace.
The same agreement could not be converted into works due to the failure on the part of the government to pay tax payable to the Royal Secretariat, he said.
He also said that from January next year, the Royal Secretariat will start teaching the priests on the does and don't by a priest and asked all concerns to submit their names to the Royal Secretariat on or before December 25 .