The Dynamics Of Development In North East India

Contributed articles.

Preface Acknowledgement List of Table Introduction SECTION I: POLITICAL DYNAMICS OF NORTH EAST INDIA 1. Looking at Contemporary Governance in North East India * Abhijit Choudhury 2. Pangs of Proximity: India's North East and Her Eastern Neighbours * Ishani Naskar 3. North East India Planning in the Winds of Change * Toki Blah SECTION II: NORTH EAST INDIA'S ECONOMY: DEVELOPMENT BOTTLENECKS 4. Challenges of Natural Disasters * Shyamananda Bhattacharjee 5. Development of Infrastructure in Mizoram: Problems and Prospects * James L.T. Thanga 6. The Dynamics of Economic Change and Good Governance: Issues of Development * T.C. Nunga 7. Regional Structure: Income and Growth in India's North East * Rakhee Bhattacharya SECTION III: NORTH EAST INDIA'S ECONOMY: REVIVAL STRATEGY 8. Rethinking Development Paradigms: Issues and Perspectives * Vanlalchhawna 9. Towards a Professional Identity: Soccer as a Career Option in Contemporary Manipur * Kausik Bandyapadhaya 10. An Exploration into the Possibility of Economic Development through India's Look East Policy: A Mizo Perspective * L.H. Rawsea SECTION IV: CONFLICTS IN NORTH EAST INDIA: HINDERING DEVELOPMENT 11. Conflict and Insurgency: Historical Perspective; Threat to Security and Development * Lt. Gen. J.R. Mukherjee 12. Challenging the Nation-State: Secessionism and Insurgency * Sajal Nag SECTION V: ROLE OF INSTITUTIONS AND MEDIA IN NORTH EAST INDIA'S DEVELOPMENT 13. Religion and Colonial Politics: Assam Myanmar and Buddhism * Swapna Bhattacharya (Chakarborti) 14. Mizoram and the Role of the Presbyterian Denomination * Margaret L. Pachuau 15. Challenges before the Media * Subir Bhaumik 16. Educational Indicators of Human Development: An Analysis * Lalhmasai Chuaungo 17. Female Work Participation Rate in Mizoram: An Analysis from Development Perspectives * Lalhriatpuii Contributors Index Northeast India, once perceived as a 'paradise', has now become a 'problem' in perpetuity due to its badly managed economy and an absolute lack of political vision. Side by side, words like 'alienation', 'exploitation' and 'insecurity' are being 'used' across the region to instigate the dangerous problem of insurgency. This has kept the region continuously in a state of flux devoid of political or economic stability so crucial for any meaningful development, negating the effects of whatever little economic development has taken place in the region. Centre's continuous development initiatives under the Special Category Status releases huge amount of development funds without creating necessary credit absorption capacity in the economy and consequently has remained unsuccessful in delivering the results woefully dismal have been the half hearted attempts made by the different State Governments in the region from time to time in the name of development. Most of these efforts were directed only towards extracting more assistance and more grants from the Centre. The book revisits these failed initiatives and re-examine the crucial areas while searching for an alternative. The volume focuses on an integrated approach towards inter-related issues in the entire region with 'development' as the pivotal and overarching factor. The collection of seventeen articles are, categorized into five broad sub-sections, extending from political dynamism to economic intricacies, social conflicts and the role of institutions which gives us an opportunity to come across the thoughts of scholars to trace the roots of and connections between, the problems that plague this region and eventually to forge a common strategy to address the issue of backwardness of this region.

Economic development of frontier and remote regions has long been a central theme of development studies. This book examines the development experience in the northeastern region in India in relation to the processes of globalisation and liberalisation of the economy. Bringing together researchers and scholars, from both within and outside the region, the volume offers a comprehensive and updated analysis of governance and development issues in relation to the northeastern economy. With its multidisciplinary approaches, the chapters cover a variety of sectors and concerns such as land, agriculture, industry, infrastructure, finance, human development, human security, trade and policy. This book will be useful to scholars and researchers of economics, public policy, governance and development, geopolitics, geography, development studies, politics and sociology of development and area studies as well as observers and policymakers interested in the Northeast.

Contributed articles.

Selected papers presented at a seminar organised by North-East India Council for Social Science Research on the theme of problems and prospects of balanced development in North-East India and the role of North-Eastern Council at Shillong.

This book examines the dynamics of infrastructure development in Northeast India, especially Manipur, from a socio-anthropological perspective. It looks at the pattern and distribution of infrastructure in the region to analyse the impact of education, roads and health care on the livelihoods, ecosystems, governance and social futures of communities. The volume examines the infrastructure deficit in the conflict-ridden state of Manipur, focusing especially on electricity and roads. The author shows how problems arising from poor infrastructure are further complicated on account of corruption, insurgency, ethnic unrest and the politics of marginalisation. Looking at the discourse around development in the northeast, the volume also highlights the structural inequality in Manipur and other states. It further shows how infrastructure development can become a means for enabling trade, creating markets, diluting boundaries between varied ethnic groups and connecting people. This book will be useful for researchers and scholars of development studies, economics, social anthropology, sociology and public policy – particularly those interested in India’s northeast.

This book discusses the history of unrest and conflict in Northeast India from 1947 to the present day. A perceptive study on public policy and its delivery in the region, the volume highlights that a crisis of governance, security and development has emerged in the Northeast because of the way various government institutions and agencies have been functioning in the area. It uses case studies to illumine conflict dynamics in the two erstwhile princely states of Manipur and Tripura, along with in-depth discussions on Assam and Nagaland. Drawing upon major policy documents, on-the-ground experience and rare insight, the book examines centre–state relations, the armed forces, special acts, human rights and larger policy-level questions confronting the region. It also underlines the key role of the northeastern states in India’s ‘Look East’ policy. Cogent and authentic, this book will be useful to scholars and researchers of security studies, peace and conflict studies, area studies, Indian politics and history, particularly those concerned with Northeast India.

Contributed articles chiefly with reference to rural development in Northeastern India; includes articles on cultural history of the region.