Several itinerant projects travelled to India in the late 90’s — and another in the fall of 2003. With those initial teams, we launched significant work in this country of great need. Teams eventually ventured into Nagaland where we developed great relationships with local churches.
Dr. Pongsing Konyak serves as MMI’s director to India, a land of exciting MMI ministry, where we have not only a permanent center in Mori Village, but also ever-strengthening friendships across Nagaland.
Project Sites
MMI teams work in the Nagaland region of India in the Dimapur area. Nagaland is situated at the easternmost part of India. The region is in constant motion with many tribal festivals during the year. The festivals are celebrations with pageantry of color and a feast of music.
Dimapur is approximately 585 ft above sea level. It is called the Gateway to Nagaland as it is a large commercial center and well connected with the state highways and rail system. Dimapur also is home to the only airport in Nagaland.
Nagaland is inhabited by 16 major tribes along with many other sub-tribes. Each tribe is distinct in character from the other in terms of customs, languages and costumes.
More About India
Nonviolent resistance to British colonialism under Mohandas Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru led to India’s independence in 1947. The subcontinent was divided into the secular state of India and the smaller Muslim state of Pakistan. A third war between the two countries in 1971 resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh.
The state of Nagaland was formally inaugurated on December 1st, 1963 as the 16th state of the Indian Union. India is a federal republic with its capital city being New Delhi.
People & Economy
More than a third of the population is too poor to be able to afford an adequate diet, and market surveys indicate that fewer than 5% of all households had an annual income equivalent to $2,300 or more in 1995-96.
Currency: Indian rupee (Re)
Industries: textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery.
Agriculture: rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, poultry; fish.
Population: 1.01 billion
Ethnic groups: Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3%
Literacy: total population: 52%
Religion: Hindu 80%, Muslim 14%, Christian 2.4%, Sikh 2%, Buddhist 0.7%, Jains 0.5%
Language: English is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication. Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people.
