Shillong, May 9: President of India Droupadi Murmu conferred the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award in the country, to Silbi Passah in the field of art during the civil investiture ceremony in New Delhi today.
Passah, a resident of Riatsamthiah, Shillong, is a retired Hindi teacher, a resource person of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and DERT (Directorate of Educational Research & Training), a renowned artist and at the same time assisting SCERT and DERT in connection with training the teachers in art and craft, acting, dancing and singing.
Her domain is socially useful, productive work (SUPW) and music. She also trained in Khasi Jaintia folk songs and traditional musical instruments.
Born on March 3, 1952, Passah completed her Bachelor’s in Hindi (Kovid) and joined service as a Hindi teacher at the Khasi Jaintia National Government Upper Primary School in Mawkhar here in 1982. To promote Hindi, she also took part in a radio programme, ‘Hindi Lesson’, on All India Radio’s Shillong service. In 2005 she was deputed to the Central Institute of Hindi in Agra for preparation of the Hindi-Khasi Contrastive Grammar.
Passah has a keen interest in promoting music and culture in the state. Through the Department of Arts and Culture in collaboration with North East Zone Cultural Centre (NEZCC), she and her troupe have had opportunities to participate in different festivals organised in the four corners of the country. It is through these platforms she tried her level best to showcase the rich cultural heritage of Meghalaya.
She is the first Khasi woman to produce a Hindi skit, titled ‘Hindi Bhasha Hamari Rashtra Bhasha Hai’, which was telecast on Doordarshan Shillong. Recently her troupe also presented a traditional dance form at the Adi Shaurya Parv Parakram ka 2023.
In recognition of Passah’s sincere service, devotion and dedication, she received various awards in various fields. She was awarded the District Certificate of Honour by the Meghalaya government in 2001, Seng Khasi Seng Kmie Honorary Award (2008); state award (2005); People’s Choice Award NETV (2005); National Award for Teachers (2006); Jeebon Roy Award (2008); Khasi Jaintia Welfare Award (2009); International Gold Star Award (Bangkok 2010); Seng Samla Seng Kmie Honorary Award (2011); Lady of Hope (Cape Town South Africa) (2012); U Tirot Sing Award for Art and Literature (Meghalaya 2014); Youth Affair Award (2019); 4th Northeast Unsung Heroes red carpet social award (2021) and Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (2021).
