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Rude Awakening
The pertinent question here is why has this issue flared up suddenly?
History says that in 1967 the then Chief Minister of Assam Bimala Prasad Chaliha had allowed the Arunachali tribals to carry out jhum cultivation and associated cultivation of ginger, paan etc for which the people paid a yearly token revenue of Re.1 to the Assam government treasury.
Gradually, many small hamlets came up in the hills and slopes and as the human population grew, these villages also grew into such places as Assin Basti, Naharani, Kamuk, Hasirusa etc as the Arunchali tribals started to consolidate their position as the Assam government allegedly played a negligent role to reclaim its territory.
Dilip Hondique, a small tea grower of the area, whose labour huts were burnt by the miscreants allegedly backed up by suspected NSCN (I-M) militants, said that the small tea growers had been the target because of multiple reasons.
“First, the small tea growers, mostly educated unemployed Assamese youth with a nationalistic mind had come up aggressively to cultivate tea in the area which had become a stumbling block in the efforts of the militants to expand their territory,” he said.
Next, the refusal from most of the small tea growers to pay extortion money to the NSCN (I-M) had infuriated them to such an extent that they have now decided to capture the territory by force and also by taking advantage of the lackadaisical attitude from the Assam side, he added.
It might be mentioned that the NSCN (I-M) had demanded a sum of Rs.500 per bigha as annual ‘tax’ from 58 small tea growers of the Charaipung area a few months back which became quite an issue in the area. The outfit in its demand letter had also threatened the small tea growers to be prepared to face the consequences if they do not pay up.
However, putting up a brave front, the small tea growers informed the police of the matter. However, baring some so-called investigation and regular patrols, the police did not take up any permanent steps to ensure security in the area.
“Land grabbing by miscreants and extortion by the NSCN (I-M) can be termed as the two main reasons for the recent flare up,” a senior police official said.
Another important aspect in the matter is the allegation that the miscreants from Arunachal Pradesh allegedly backed up by the suspected NSCN (I-M) had never accepted the idea of the Assam Police having a permanent police infrastructure in the area.
In 1996, the Charaipung border outpost was attacked by heavily armed NSCN (I-M) militants who set the outpost on fire. The few Assam policemen posted at the outpost somehow managed to flee without any counter offensive.
Again in 2005, the outpost was attacked by miscreants and armed goons backed up by NSCN (I-M). This time also the Assam police meekly surrendered and later relocated the outpost 500 metres inside Assam territory.
However, the NSCN (I-M) had denied its role in the Charaipung episode and blamed the flare up on the government of both sides.
Repeated applications and petitions and constant incidents of violence finally forced the Assam government to upgrade the Charaipung border outpost into a full fledged police station on January 1, 2010.
The construction work of the new police station is going on at the earlier spot (Prior to the relocation). “Construction of the permanent police station did not go down well with the miscreants and militants due to which they attacked the building which was still under construction and caused severe damage to it,” Sivasagar Superintendent of Police Akhilesh Singh said.
Singh said that the construction of the police station will continue and the police presence in the area will be increased even after normality is restored.
Both the sides had agreed upon joint patrol and joint operations against the NSCN (I-M) as a first step of confidence building measures, it remains to
be seen whether this will actually help.
It will be up to the state governments in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh to decide and deliver to re-build the shattered trust of bonhomie between both the states. The key for the governments on either side will be to take up a slew of developmental initiatives so that the people living in the inter-state border areas can reap benefits from these schemes.
The Assam government which immediately learnt its lesson from the Charaipung episode had already announced a 10 crore developmental package for the development of the area.
The development package includes construction and repair of the entire road communication network in the area, construction of a model hospital, guest house, rural electrification of the entire area, setting up of a water supply scheme and construction of Indira Awas Yogna (IAY) houses for those who had lost their houses during the flare up.
Sonari Legislative Assembly constituency legislator Sarat Borkotoki who visited the site along with two other Assam ministers namely Health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Forest minister Rockybul Hussain said that the state government is seriously considering the problems being faced by the small tea growers of the area due to not having land pattas.
“Small tea growers are working as our frontline defence in the sensitive zone. Therefore, it is our moral duty to take up whatever necessary steps we can for the welfare of the small tea growers,” Borkotoki said after his visit to the area.
Arunachal Pradesh Finance minister Setong Sena who is widely acknowledged for his political diplomacy also visited the site along with Parliamentary Secretary Newlai Tingkatra and Deomali MLA Wanki Lowang.
“The need of the hour is to restore normality. Both the sides had agreed upon this and the Government of Arunachal Pradesh is committed to keep its word,” Sena said.
The Finance minister also stated that developmental projects will be initiated in Arunachal Pradesh as well so that the people in the border areas do not suffer any more.
“It is better to agree that very little had been done for the development of people in the border villages. We will ensure that development in real sense takes place,” the Finance minister said.
The flare up in Charaipung had woken up the governments on both sides. Now everybody is showing concern for these border villagers who had remained in absolute neglect for several decades now. How long this concern will last is the bigger question now. Is it genuine concern or political announcements? Only time will tell.
Ripunjoy Das
History says that in 1967 the then Chief Minister of Assam Bimala Prasad Chaliha had allowed the Arunachali tribals to carry out jhum cultivation and associated cultivation of ginger, paan etc for which the people paid a yearly token revenue of Re.1 to the Assam government treasury.
Gradually, many small hamlets came up in the hills and slopes and as the human population grew, these villages also grew into such places as Assin Basti, Naharani, Kamuk, Hasirusa etc as the Arunchali tribals started to consolidate their position as the Assam government allegedly played a negligent role to reclaim its territory.
Dilip Hondique, a small tea grower of the area, whose labour huts were burnt by the miscreants allegedly backed up by suspected NSCN (I-M) militants, said that the small tea growers had been the target because of multiple reasons.
“First, the small tea growers, mostly educated unemployed Assamese youth with a nationalistic mind had come up aggressively to cultivate tea in the area which had become a stumbling block in the efforts of the militants to expand their territory,” he said.
Next, the refusal from most of the small tea growers to pay extortion money to the NSCN (I-M) had infuriated them to such an extent that they have now decided to capture the territory by force and also by taking advantage of the lackadaisical attitude from the Assam side, he added.
It might be mentioned that the NSCN (I-M) had demanded a sum of Rs.500 per bigha as annual ‘tax’ from 58 small tea growers of the Charaipung area a few months back which became quite an issue in the area. The outfit in its demand letter had also threatened the small tea growers to be prepared to face the consequences if they do not pay up.
However, putting up a brave front, the small tea growers informed the police of the matter. However, baring some so-called investigation and regular patrols, the police did not take up any permanent steps to ensure security in the area.“Land grabbing by miscreants and extortion by the NSCN (I-M) can be termed as the two main reasons for the recent flare up,” a senior police official said.
Another important aspect in the matter is the allegation that the miscreants from Arunachal Pradesh allegedly backed up by the suspected NSCN (I-M) had never accepted the idea of the Assam Police having a permanent police infrastructure in the area.
In 1996, the Charaipung border outpost was attacked by heavily armed NSCN (I-M) militants who set the outpost on fire. The few Assam policemen posted at the outpost somehow managed to flee without any counter offensive.
Again in 2005, the outpost was attacked by miscreants and armed goons backed up by NSCN (I-M). This time also the Assam police meekly surrendered and later relocated the outpost 500 metres inside Assam territory.
However, the NSCN (I-M) had denied its role in the Charaipung episode and blamed the flare up on the government of both sides.
Repeated applications and petitions and constant incidents of violence finally forced the Assam government to upgrade the Charaipung border outpost into a full fledged police station on January 1, 2010.
The construction work of the new police station is going on at the earlier spot (Prior to the relocation). “Construction of the permanent police station did not go down well with the miscreants and militants due to which they attacked the building which was still under construction and caused severe damage to it,” Sivasagar Superintendent of Police Akhilesh Singh said.
Singh said that the construction of the police station will continue and the police presence in the area will be increased even after normality is restored.
Both the sides had agreed upon joint patrol and joint operations against the NSCN (I-M) as a first step of confidence building measures, it remains to
be seen whether this will actually help.It will be up to the state governments in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh to decide and deliver to re-build the shattered trust of bonhomie between both the states. The key for the governments on either side will be to take up a slew of developmental initiatives so that the people living in the inter-state border areas can reap benefits from these schemes.
The Assam government which immediately learnt its lesson from the Charaipung episode had already announced a 10 crore developmental package for the development of the area.
The development package includes construction and repair of the entire road communication network in the area, construction of a model hospital, guest house, rural electrification of the entire area, setting up of a water supply scheme and construction of Indira Awas Yogna (IAY) houses for those who had lost their houses during the flare up.
Sonari Legislative Assembly constituency legislator Sarat Borkotoki who visited the site along with two other Assam ministers namely Health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Forest minister Rockybul Hussain said that the state government is seriously considering the problems being faced by the small tea growers of the area due to not having land pattas.
“Small tea growers are working as our frontline defence in the sensitive zone. Therefore, it is our moral duty to take up whatever necessary steps we can for the welfare of the small tea growers,” Borkotoki said after his visit to the area.
Arunachal Pradesh Finance minister Setong Sena who is widely acknowledged for his political diplomacy also visited the site along with Parliamentary Secretary Newlai Tingkatra and Deomali MLA Wanki Lowang.
“The need of the hour is to restore normality. Both the sides had agreed upon this and the Government of Arunachal Pradesh is committed to keep its word,” Sena said.
The Finance minister also stated that developmental projects will be initiated in Arunachal Pradesh as well so that the people in the border areas do not suffer any more.
“It is better to agree that very little had been done for the development of people in the border villages. We will ensure that development in real sense takes place,” the Finance minister said.
The flare up in Charaipung had woken up the governments on both sides. Now everybody is showing concern for these border villagers who had remained in absolute neglect for several decades now. How long this concern will last is the bigger question now. Is it genuine concern or political announcements? Only time will tell.
Ripunjoy Das
