KATHMANDU: As the world is getting ready to welcome the New Year 2017, another day is being celebrated on the same day in Kathmandu: Dhaka Topi Day. On the occasion, a programme would start at 7 am in Maitighar Mandala on Sunday. The organiser, the Jagaruk Yuwa Abhiyan Nepal, has urged the youth to mark their presence and make the programme a successful one. This year the organisers have decided to mark the event with the theme of ‘Hamro Shaan, Hamro Pahichan: Nepali Topi Abhiyan’ (Our Pride, Our Identity: Nepali Topi Campaign) and demand for daura, suruwal and Dhaka topi to be re-established as the national dress, according to a press statement issued by the Abhiyan's Coordinator Ghanashyam Shrestha. Some youth campaigners have been marking the New Year of the Gregorian calendar as the Dhaka Topi Day for past three years now 'in order to preserve the national identity amid the growing westernisation among the youth.' Every now and then, on festive occasions, the topis do come out and even then only men from the older generation can be seen donning the traditional head gear. The true meaning of the topi has been lost among the youth of today, according to the campaigners. The topi signifies not only our national identity but also an ecological importance. “The Dhaka topi is said to represent the mountain after the melting of the ice. The melted ice enables the growth of greenery and vibrantly coloured flowers in the lower regions of the mountain. Thus, the Dhaka topi was made colourful to represent the ecological system,” the organiser said.