East Siang, 27^th September, 2024: Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) organised the Elephant Cup Football Tournament in the East Siang District to mark the annual Solung Festival, 2024. The tournament was organised in collaboration with the District Football Association (DFA), East Siang.

Solung Festival is one of the most important cultural festivals for the indigenous Adi community of Arunachal Pradesh. Celebrated to mark a bountiful harvest, the festival is a blend of rituals, dances, traditional food, music and sports, showcasing the richness of the Adi and bringing together the whole community.

Women’s team at Elephant Cup Football Tournament 2024 | Photograph by Dindi Padi/WTI

This year, the four days of festivity was kicked off with a football tournament between the teams of Mer, Namsing and Paglam villages. The team from Namsing bagged the championship and went on to win the Elephant Cup 2024. They played the finals against Mer Village football team and winning by a 1-0 margin. The members of the Kotgah Community Reserve Society (KCRS), Range Forest Officer, Zilla Parishad Member and Village Headmen of Namsing, Mer and Paglam villages joined in the celebration to encourage and appreciate the local youth participation in wildlife conservation awareness. The women and girls of Namsing village also showed their enthusiasm by participating in an exhibition match during the tournament.

The Elephant Cup Football Tournament witnessed the love for football and the success of wildlife conservation awareness outreach. With more than 700 enthusiastic spectators turning out for every match, the tournament bought together local stakeholders and youth participation. The Elephant Cup 2024 was a shining example of how sports can transcend entertainment and become a force for good and ensure that future generations will inherit a world where elephants, and other wildlife, continue to coexist in harmony with humans.

The winners of Elephant Cup football Tournament 2024 | Photograph by Dindi Padi/WTI

This was the second installment of the Elephant Cup in East Siang District and WTI hopes to continue with the annual event. The D’Ering Dibru Saikhowa Elephant Link Project was launched in 2021 with support from World Land Trust to secure the critical landscape of the D’Ering- Dibru Saikhowa Corridor. The aim has been to notify approx. 500 hectares of community land in Mer, Namsing and Paglam villages in the Arunachal side of the corridor as Community Reserves (CR). A large part of the effort relies on the active involvement of the locals in ensuring that this unique elephant corridor is protected and that the gentle giants have their right of passage.