Tsum Valley celebrating non-violence centenary in April

KATHMANDU: The mystical Tsum Valley in Gorkha district is set to host the Non-Violence Centenary Festival in April to mark 100 years since the declaration of the area as a non-violence zone.

The four-day festival is aimed at promoting Tsum Valley as a destination for peace and contributing to biodiversity conservation. Nima Lama, the president of the, organized by the Non-Violence Centenary Festival Organizing Committee and chairperson of Chumanuwri Rural Municipality, expressed hope that the festival will strengthen social and cultural unity in the area and reinforce the commitment to conservation. Speaking at a a press conference in Kathmandu, Lama expressed his desire for government support in the ongoing campaign for non-violence that began 100 years ago.

The festival is scheduled to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on April 19.

The locals of Tsum Valley had originally planned to organize the Non-Violence Festival in 2020. They had made a group commitment to non-violence at the initiation of Dukpa Lama Serap Dorje in 1920. The local people have abstained from killing animals and setting forests on fire, among others, for the past 100 years.