Talent showcase marks Fresher's Meet of Pettigrew College
Source: Chronicle News Service / R Lester Makang

Ukhrul, May 17 2022: Various skills and talents of the students in extracurricular activities were showcased to mark the celebration of the 57th Fresher's Meet of Pettigrew College held at its multipurpose hall on Tuesday.

As many as 600 students, the largest number ever witnessed for the first time in decades, crammed the hall to witness the function which was held after a hiatus of two consecutive years due to Covid-19 pandemic.

In what manifested a positive change in the second oldest government college, many of the students were those who passed out from different reputed private schools from Imphal and other parts of the state.

Among the freshers also included students from different communities of the state.

Held under the theme 'Rekindle', the celebration was attended by Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) president David K Shimray as the chief guest, while vice principal of the college Peter Horam was the guest of honour.

Addressing the gathering of students, Shimray urged the students to safeguard the sanctity of the institute by developing a sense of respect to teachers and elders alike.

"Gone are the days when students were respectful to their teachers.

But this attitude has changed among today's students", he continued, urging the student community to embrace the virtue for a fulfilling life.

He further called upon the young students to inculcate the values of discipline and decency so that they could lead their lives in the right direction.

Reminding the students that they are the future pillar of the society, Shimray exhorted each of them to shoulder the responsibilities of re shaping the society and also cautioned the young students against taking drugs or indulging in any unethical activities.

"It's God's wish for every one of you, as is written in the Holy Bible, to serve Him diligently and with a faithful heart when you are young and agile", he further encouraged them.

Stressing on the need for rebuilding the society, he said: "This is possible only when we have good educational institution to produce good leaders ".

He said that to realise this goal, Tangkhul Naga Long is mounting pressure on the government to upgrade the Pettigrew College to the status of a standard university at the earliest.

"This is the only government college in our district and we can never afford to let it go waste.

We can see many improvements in the institute today and our wish is to make it a university for the students to reap the real benefits", Shimray added.

Adding youthful flavour to the celebration, a contest titled 'King and Queen' was also conducted from among the freshers.

Thothing Soro (BA 2nd Semester) was crowned the coveted title of the King, while Soyami Luikham (BA 2nd Semester) walked away with the Queen crown.

The fresher students displayed their skills and talents in varied activities like choreography, singing and cultural shows to enthral the gathering.

According to the students, the current strength of the college's students is 608 and out of this, 420 are freshers.

"We are looking forward to seeing a big increase in the number of students in the coming new academic session", said a senior student.

The meet was organised by the senior students of the college under the guidance of the teaching staff.

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