SSC
Dree, the agricultural festival of the Apatani tribe of Arunachal Pradesh, is celebrated in which month?
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Answer: Option B — July
Detailed Solution
Dree is the most important festival of the Apatani tribe of Arunachal Pradesh. It is an agricultural festival celebrated every year in July, with the main celebrations on 5 July, in the Ziro valley of the Lower Subansiri district, the homeland of the Apatanis.
Dree is celebrated to pray to the gods for a good harvest, for protection of the crops from pests, insects and disease, and for the welfare and prosperity of the people. It is held after the transplanting of the paddy seedlings. During the festival, offerings and sacrifices of fowls, eggs and animals are made to the deities, especially to Tamu, Metii, Danyi and Harniang. Tamu is worshipped to protect the crops from pests, Metii to prevent famine and epidemics, Danyi (the sun and moon) for the protection of the crops and the people, and Harniang to keep the soil fertile. The rituals are performed by the priests, and cucumbers are distributed to everyone as part of the celebration. The festival also includes cultural programmes, traditional dances, songs, games and feasting.
The Apatanis are known for their unique and sustainable farming system in the Ziro valley, which combines wet rice cultivation with fish farming in the same fields (paddy-cum-fish culture), without the use of animals or machines. Their cultural landscape has been included in UNESCO's tentative list of World Heritage Sites. In the past, Apatani women were known for their facial tattoos and large nose plugs, a custom that has now been abandoned. The Ziro valley also hosts the Ziro Festival of Music, held every September. The Apatanis also celebrate the Myoko festival in March.
Why not the other options?
- ✗April is the month of Mopin, the festival of the Galo tribe.
- ✗September is the month of Solung, the festival of the Adi tribe.
- ✗December is not the month of Dree.
Quick tip
Remember: Dree = the Apatani tribe, the Ziro valley, July (5 July) and the paddy-cum-fish farming system.
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Festivals & Fairs of India — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Festivals & Fairs of India, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the religious, harvest, tribal and cultural festivals of India, the fairs (melas) held across the country, and the states, communities and seasons linked to them. It also includes festivals listed by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage, such as Kumbh Mela and Durga Puja in Kolkata. Most questions ask which state celebrates a festival, which tribe it belongs to, or what event it marks. Harvest festivals are especially common: Pongal (Tamil Nadu), Onam (Kerala), Bihu (Assam), Lohri and Baisakhi (Punjab) and Nuakhai (Odisha). Fairs such as the Pushkar camel fair (Rajasthan) and the Sonepur cattle fair (Bihar) are also frequently tested. Revise festivals state by state. Practise the festivals and fairs questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.