Ranikor Festival:

The Mawkyrwat Sub Divisional Officers Welfare Association, (MSDOWA) Mawkyrwat organized a Beach Festival at Ranikor on the 23 and 24 February 2007. The two- day event was a huge success attracting tourists from all over the state and Guwahati. There was extensive coverage from both the print and the electronic media that applauded the idea of organizing a festival in Ranikor that has the potential to be a tourist destination. The various activities organized on the two days of the festival were:

• Display of the rich cultural diversity of Ranikor by various groups, like Khasis, Garos, Hajong, Assameese etc., through dance and music.
• Beach soccer and beach volleyball
• Boat ride to the Jadukata Bridge.
• Trekking to the International Border with the assistance of BSF.
• Boat riding.
• Archery competition with participants from all across Khasi Hills.
• Swimming.
• Kite flying.
• Performance by live band.
• Disco on the Beach with DJ.
• Ethnic cuisine.

The aim of organizing the festival was to promote Ranikor as a tourist destination. The immense success of the festival has partially achieved the intended aim. But more needs to be done to sustain the momentum. More events need to be organized and more publicity needs to be given to the place if its full potential is to be realized. With this thought and to carry forward the success of last year, the MSDOWA is planning to organize the second Ranikor Beach Festival 13th, 14th and 15th December, 2007. The second festival will be bigger in scale and will hopefully attract more tourists than last year. More events will be added and the previous years experience will be used to make the event a bigger success. A participatory approach with the involvement of the stakeholders (local people) will be adopted as was done in the past. This will lead to greater sustainability and awareness among the locals about Tourism, which is essential in the long term.