GTDC (Goa Tourism Development Corporation) is an entity of the Department of Tourism and it is responsible and engaged in promoting the tourism in the state of Goa. The two day Tribal Festival is one such effort of the GTDC to promote the rustic Goa and its tradition and culture to the tourists coming from all over the world.
According to the sources in the GTDC, this is the 6th Edition of the Tribal Festival which will be held in Goa in the month of January, in the Xeldem Village. “A two-day tribal festival and its sixth edition are set to be organized by the Adivasi Sangatna, Quepem on January 7-8, 2017. The festival aims at reviving, promoting and preserving the State’s unique traditional games, culture and cuisine, especially the customs of the tribal population,” says the press note.
According to the sources, this year GTDC organizing the festival at the Village Panchayat Ground, Xeldem – Quepem. The Tribal Association will organize various events, competitions, folklore programs and special programmes for children. On 7th January 2017, the festival will commence at 3.00 pm and on 8th January, the festival will begin from 10.00 am onwards for the whole day.
The GTDC chairman, Mr. Nilesh Cabral, said, “The Tribal Festival is unique and brings out the essence of the tribal population who live in Goa and follow certain customs and traditions. The festival is being given a boost by Goa Tourism as tourists will get insights into Goa’s lesser known communities and their lifestyles.”
Traditional games like chateani, logoreani, ton barani – guli danda, preparation of traditional items like mol’la (palm leaf mat), san’n (broom making), nivoni (paddy grass weaving) and fulla fati (head bands of flowers), stalls with traditional instruments and kapdam (clothing) unique to the tribal community, preparation of fov, ambil (nachni porridge), pita gulio, pinagre, donne, sanna, pattoleo, shevyo and soji will be on display and sale.
The annual souvenir of the Tribal Association will also be released on 7th January 2017. This year the tribal festival is expected to draw large crowds, both tourists and locals as the uniqueness of the festival have been promoted widely and have generated keen interest from tourists.
