Refusing to look beyond Brahmaputra Of indifference and neglect
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Where does the North East region of the country figure in the consciousness of New Delhi ? Can the change from Look East to Act East Policy be taken to mean that Delhi is not averse to the idea of brushing aside the interests of the North East at the altar of geo-politics ? Is neutralising the growing clout of neighbouring countries, particularly China, via the use of proxy forces, acceptable even at the cost of human lives in the North Eastern States of India ? Is it desirable that the interests of the North Eastern people be shoved aside so that more footage can be gained in the neighbouring country of Myanmar and in the process be in a better position to more closely study the growing clout of China in the region ? Only Delhi can answer these questions, but the very fact that the need to raise these has arisen should tell its own very significant story. Manipur has been burning for over two years now. There is nothing to suggest that New Delhi is intent on taking forward the Framework Agreement signed with the NSCN (IM) on August 3, 2015. On the contrary it has become more and more clear that Delhi is not keen to look east of the Brahmaputra and take cognizance of the fact that there are people settled in these parts of the country, with some places having a history that dates back thousands of years--In fact, entities, which may be said to be much older than the great Union of India. For decades the North East has been just a footnote in the consciousness of mainland India. Its history has never been taught in the schools and colleges of India, much less the fact that there are people here in this part of the country who look very different from the people in say Delhi or Uttar Pradesh or Gujarat. And to say that the India of today was the dream and aspirations of stalwarts like Gandhi, Nehru and Patel would be doing great injustice to these late leaders. Naming a place or two and a thing or two after heroes and heroines of the region and the land can at best be cosmetic efforts to win over the hearts and minds of the people here with nothing to show at the ground. Take Manipur for instance. With road travel practically cut off, the only means to go outside Manipur is by air with the air fare shooting up to the sky. As many have pointed out, the airfare from Imphal to Guwahati comes somewhere close to the airfare between Delhi and any of the foreign destinations in Asia. Privatisation and market dictates, are obviously the reasons one will hear, but if the Civil Aviation Ministry can issue a sort of a guideline to all the major airlines to keep a check on their airfare just ahead of the great Diwali break some time back, why wasn’t some action taken along this line for Manipur ? A figure on the sharp hike in the number of air passengers after May 3, 2023 should certainly give some insights on how people today are compelled to fly, even to go to nearby places like Guwahati or Shillong.
Many things just don’t add up. Even after more than two years, Delhi is still unable to assure free movement along the National Highways, particularly NH-2 which connects Imphal to Dimapur. One wonders how things would have been if a similar situation had unfolded in any other parts of the country. Some things just don’t add up and this is where it sounds non-sensical when some home grown political leaders of the place sing paeans to Delhi, even going to the extent of thanking it for the peace it has ensured. Maybe to these people things do add up, but not to the common people, and majority of the people come within the understanding of the common people. So what is that the North Eastern States can do ? Particularly for States like Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh ? A united stand is obviously the call, but then under what banner should these States come together ? This is where there will be no easy answer for each State is unique in its own ways and at times their interests may clash. A pan North East leader, a figure who can smoothen the differences and be able to work on the commonness is the need of the hour. But then again finding someone with this calibre may be too tall a task and the answer may perhaps lie in the people working out the common interests and see how to work on them together. Such a situation sounds far fetched at the moment, but the need to forge a united stand on common issues and make Delhi realise that the region is central to the Act East Policy and this should not be overridden by the compulsion of geo-politics is badly needed--A politics where the North East can end up as the sacrificial lamb.
Many things just don’t add up. Even after more than two years, Delhi is still unable to assure free movement along the National Highways, particularly NH-2 which connects Imphal to Dimapur. One wonders how things would have been if a similar situation had unfolded in any other parts of the country. Some things just don’t add up and this is where it sounds non-sensical when some home grown political leaders of the place sing paeans to Delhi, even going to the extent of thanking it for the peace it has ensured. Maybe to these people things do add up, but not to the common people, and majority of the people come within the understanding of the common people. So what is that the North Eastern States can do ? Particularly for States like Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh ? A united stand is obviously the call, but then under what banner should these States come together ? This is where there will be no easy answer for each State is unique in its own ways and at times their interests may clash. A pan North East leader, a figure who can smoothen the differences and be able to work on the commonness is the need of the hour. But then again finding someone with this calibre may be too tall a task and the answer may perhaps lie in the people working out the common interests and see how to work on them together. Such a situation sounds far fetched at the moment, but the need to forge a united stand on common issues and make Delhi realise that the region is central to the Act East Policy and this should not be overridden by the compulsion of geo-politics is badly needed--A politics where the North East can end up as the sacrificial lamb.