Shillong, Aug 18: Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Monday launched ‘Ki Dienjat’, a research initiative to re-examine the socio-cultural linkages of Khasi-Jaintia tribes with Southeast Asia.
Describing Ki Dienjat as “a journey of rediscovery — reconnecting with our past so that we may better understand our present and shape our future,” he said early colonial records and indigenous knowledge suggest the Khasi and Jaintia tribes may have migrated from present-day Cambodia and Laos.
To address gaps in research caused by lack of funding, logistical challenges and limited institutional support, the government has constituted a study team under the Department of Arts & Culture for an interdisciplinary effort to explore ancestral origins, he said.
The CM also launched the Ki Dienjat e-Portal, a centralised platform for data, collaboration and monitoring to make research more accessible and transparent.
He informed that a similar research project for the Garo Hills will be launched on September 1, on the birth anniversary of Late PA Sangma, who had stressed the need for research on Garo roots.
The CM also remotely inaugurated the Ki Dienjat Research Room at Williamson Sangma State Museum, Shillong, and released the project document. He called for collaboration from all stakeholders and urged young scholars to participate, stating the initiative reaffirms the government’s commitment to preserving Meghalaya’s cultural heritage.
Arts & Culture Minister Sanbor Shullai, Justice Hamarsan Singh Thangkhiew, Principal Secretary Arts & Culture and members of the research team were also present.
