Nagaland chief minister, T.R. Zeliang has called for sincerity and hard work among the Nagas. Gracing the monolith unveiling ceremony of late Ikiesing Thou at Jalukie town, Zeliang said one must work with sincerity and commitment based on which the future of a generation would be decided.
“We must work with honesty, sincerity and commitment in whatever field we are in order to seek God’s blessings for our future generation,” he added. He said “one must live full and die empty” for the fulfilment of life’s purpose.
Terming Late Ikiesing Thou as a “prophet with a vision”, Zeliang recalled the former’s contributions and said these were of great relevance to the society even today. Urging the younger generation to follow the footsteps of Late Ikiesing Thou, the chief minister hoped that the society would produce more visionaries like him in the days to come.
“He lived life like a gentleman and left like a gentleman,” he observed. Late Ikiesing Thou, founder of Ikiesingram village, was born in 1925 and appointed as Dobashi by Sir CR Pawsey, then Deputy Commissioner of Kohima, in 1943. He was promoted as Hd. Dobashi in 1947, the first among the Zeliangs to hold the post, and worked in Kolkata and Bhubaneswar as DB Scout attached to the DC.
For his bravery and contributions during the World War II, he was awarded “Certificate of Gallantry” in 1945. Late Ikiesing Thou, who had received several National and State-level awards for his contributions to society, was also an MLA in late TN Angami’s ministry.
He was elected uncontested from Peren constituency in the by-election of 1966 as an NNO candidate. He later joined the Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee as an executive member after NNO merged with the INC. He leaves behind 123 descendants.