Writing on the wall

Nagaland state may have celebrated its 60th Statehood Day on December 1 but it is not surprising that the event is not celebrated with gusto around the state. A state level program at the Civil Secretariat Plaza in Kohima to commemorate the event is all there is to it. The state government initiates or launches various schemes and projects, as it happened this year as well, which is the usual practice. It is difficult to recall the Statehood Day being celebrated in the other districts, towns and villages other than Kohima in the manner it ought to be. This is one revelation which proves that Statehood is not and was not the aspiration of the Naga people realized. Nagaland State was brought about as a result of the political exigency existing then and it can be said that Statehood was at best a stopgap arrangement. Even if Statehood was meant to solve the Naga political problem, the manner in which it was implemented was flawed. As such, the Naga political problem persists to this day.

Be that as it may, the times are fast changing and the future is shrouded in uncertainty. While there are Nagas from other states wanting to join Nagaland state, there are still some who want to bifurcate the state. It is hoped that the theory of ‘order out of chaos’ is not being implemented by some higher authority here. Time will tell. The truth shall emerge in the fullness of time. Sadly, it will be too late for Naga people by then and their long cherished dream of dignified existence might prove to be too long a shot. However, whatever the future may hold in store for Naga people, there is one thing that they can do and that is to focus on the present, the here and now, for the simple reason that what they do today shall determine their future.

It is in this context that the intellectuals, the intelligentsia, the leaders and the people in general ought to gauge the policies of the Government of India. Naga lands are of strategic importance for India, the Naga people may be not so much. For India, Naga land and the adjoining NE India region are of topmost geopolitical interest. India’s national security and integrity cannot be guaranteed unless and until the NE Region is brought to the Indian mainstream. That, coupled with economic interests, is why New Delhi is ready to go the extra mile in mainstreaming the NE region. The Act East policy is being pursued in all earnestness even as this column is being penned down. As India endeavor to establish itself as a global superpower, propelled by a rightwing nationalist government, the NE region including Naga land becomes just a territory that needs to be consolidated. On the other hand, as the future of the world is set to become Asia centric, India’s geopolitics is naturally going to be focused on the east. India’s relation with ASEAN countries is crucial. In the process, a lot of investment and economic activities are bound to happen in the NE India region in the future – in fact, it is already happening. Unless we understand the situation and interpret the writing on the wall correctly, we risk losing everything we have. Development will come, no doubt. But the question is, at what cost?