Aizawl, 9 December 2025: The Department of History and Ethnography, Mizoram University, in collaboration with the Malaviya Mission Teacher Training Centre (MMTTC), Mizoram University, inaugurated a three-day international seminar titled “Beyond Borders and Texts: Reframing the History and Polity of Highlanders in the Eastern Himalayan Borderlands” on 9th December 2025 at the MMTTC Lecture Hall, Cluster Building, Mizoram University.
The inaugural session was chaired by Prof. Kishor Gaikwad, Head of the Department of History and Ethnography. The programme commenced with the formal felicitation of the Chief Guest and the Guest of Honour, marking the ceremonial opening of the seminar. This was followed by an introductory address by Prof. K. Robin, Convener of the seminar, who outlined its objectives and emphasized the need to critically reassess existing historical and political frameworks used to study the Himalayan borderlands. He encouraged participants to engage deeply with alternative narratives and indigenous perspectives.
The session featured a keynote address by Prof. David C. Williams, School of Law, Indiana University, who underscored the importance of understanding highlander identities through their own lived experiences, practices, and collective self-understandings rather than relying solely on colonial archives. This was followed by a special lecture by Prof. Sajal Nag, Department of History, Royal Global University, Guwahati, who highlighted songs and dances as subtle yet powerful forms of resistance employed by the Mizo community during the colonial period.
Addressing the gathering as Guest of Honour, Prof. Vanlalchhawna, Finance Officer, Mizoram University, commended the initiative and noted the relevance of the seminar’s theme in contemporary academic and socio-political discourse. The Chief Guest, Pu C. Lalsawivunga, Hon’ble Minister for Art and Culture, Government of Mizoram, emphasized the significance of scholarly research grounded in indigenous historical perspectives for shaping future scholarship and cultural understanding.
The inaugural session concluded with a Vote of Thanks proposed by Dr. Lalrinnunga Hmar, Associate Professor, Department of History and Ethnography, Mizoram University, who expressed gratitude to the dignitaries, speakers, participants, organizers, and research scholars for their contributions to the successful commencement of the seminar.