At a recent press conference addressed by the Rising People’s Party (RPP) after culminating their walkathon, ‘A walk to save Nagaland’ in Dimapur, their president Joel Naga categorically said that there is no governance in other districts of Nagaland other than Kohima and Dimapur areas and he further added that even in advanced districts like Mokokchung, some areas remain so backward and specifically mentioned Longchem EAC headquarters area as “one of the most backward areas” where the bridges are made of wood and vehicles have to ply on the wooden bridge. And that is a bitter medicine to swallow!
Generations have grown up with the pre-conceived notion that Mokokchung is a ‘Land of Pioneers’ and that it is home to one of the most advanced tribes in Nagaland. Had that notion not been engrained into our minds at a young age, today, we would not have been blindfolded to see the reality that the Mokokchung we all love is now like a bed-ridden old man waiting to breathe his last.
The economic activities of the town is on a recess, students are migrating to other districts in search of better educational institutions, youths are migrating from the town looking for employment and other opportunities, farmers in rural areas are abandoning their agricultural activities and the well-off would rather invest in other districts. Now, who or what is left in Mokokchung? Even the few that remain today will leave town after retirement for sure.
There is a much-awaited Dr. T. Ao trophy scheduled to be held from April 19 in Mokokchung Town where all the 16 districts of Nagaland are expected to participate. This, after a long time, a major event is coming to Mokokchung with about 400 athletes and support staff for which the MDFA deserves its due credit. But, consequently, we also cannot ignore that Mokokchung is in no comfortable position to seamlessly host an event of such stature. Reflecting this thought at a time when we have just witnessed a well-developed Indira Gandhi Stadium in Kohima successfully hosting a South Asian Cross Country Championship (SACCC) – an international event, here, Mokokchung is struggling to hold even an inter-district event. And the irony that encompasses it all is that Dr. T. Ao was a pioneer in the field of sports for the state.
A district with the highest number of assembly constituencies, a district with an impressive literacy rate better than the rest of Nagaland and India, and a district that was once synonymous with ‘progress and development’ seems to have become a district lurking in the shadows of others and of its own past.
Did the turtle seriously win the race when the hare was sleeping?