A brief summary of Eastern-Western Nagaland disparity
This summer season has brought with it immense toll of landslides, floods and many damages all over Nagaland alongwith the rest of the country. The havoc of nature in Kohima, Zunheboto, Dimapur and certain other places had been much acknowledged and attempted to manage the disaster, indemnify and reconstruct the destruction. This is proper and laudable on the part of media to cover, publicize, urge and bring the attention and assurances from the Government. The one thing that is needed and brings into light through this column is, are all the victims of Nagaland getting the same thorough survey and measures for the similar losses? What are our local reporters doing or are we just waiting for people from outside to come and do the necessary hype for us. There is enough landslides where houses were swept away, flooding of river banks that submerged vast areas of fields, wreckages of bridges, roads and all that the monsoon devastate us with whole over Tuensang and parts of Eastern Nagaland(EN). But the thing is that EN is just not fortunate enough to get good media coverage and subsequent indemnities and securities. Even I had a share of landslide problem, part of my household composition and site being swept away along with neighbours’ by unattended sector drainage. We have urged the administration time and again to construct the drainage which is causing the public so much damage by overflow and landslides but there is no initiative from them authority (for the record there is not one proper drainage being constructed whole over Tuensang). This is observable fact seen in every part of Eastern Nagaland in development and deprivation. It makes one wonder if Eastern Nagaland is destined to get any welfare at all from the Government. Let me try to highlight some more of such crucial discernable reality for information and the best knowledge of the people.
In the beginning of year, once around early March month in a certain meeting for Integrated Pulse Polio and Vaccination Camp in the Chief Medical Office Tuensang, many persons, Doctors, Nurses, Health workers (H/W) etc were present. In the midst of discussion the boss asked if there is present the H/W from Kinjung area (a village in Thonoknyu constituency bordering Myanmar- 70-80 km Noklak). The responsible worker stood up and admitted his presence. The boss then asked if the Vaccination has been done in the area (Kinjung and the villages that cover under it). The worker replied that it is still not initiated due to this-that problem. Hearing that the Vaccination is still not being done in the area, the boss became somewhat uneasy and retorted, “If the Vaccination is not done in the area during this dry season then after next month it will be impossible to reach the place, the roads will be unimaginable to tread. We have to reach these days and finish the work fast.” What does one make out of this conversation? Don’t the people out there have the right to proper health and good life in the summer and winter as much as in the dry and cool season? Don’t they have right to good health in the wet season or are they supposed to die of diseases in the wet season? Is not the health a basic amenity of people throughout life? Why are still there not roads even for medical access and livelihoods in these days of modernity in the area? Is it not our duty to provide them with good livelihood and health facilities? Is this the shortcoming of the State Government to have no roads to reach even to the corners of her own house? Or is it the shortfall of the Eastern Nagaland leaders to not even discern of own people living in such injustice? Does it mean the representation of the leaders of EN in the Government cannot do anything for as basic as even health and livelihood for their own people? What must be done here? The question is innumerable. The Eastern Nagaland had been unadministered area during British time and more it makes us conjecture that even in these present civilization parts of the jurisdiction are still unadministered.
The distance from Tuensang to Mokokchung is approximately 111km. When we speculate the time taken of a normal vehicle to reach the destination it will be around 2-3 hours distinctively. But what we have here is of 5-6 hours according to the dry and wet seasons. The only one road that connects us is so bad that it takes breath-taking maneuvers from the drivers all the way and makes the journey very dangerous. Even during the just concluded 31st NBCC Youth Crusade in Tuensang Town it was brought into our notice that some of our brothers and sisters from parts of Nagaland couldn’t attend the meet due to minor road mishap and problem. This livelihood road has always been one of the most sought grievances alongwith the Tuensang-Longleng road addressed from the people to the authority but it never reached the open ears of the Government. Anyone who has travel by this road to Tuensang can clearly tell how much disparity there is even by one observation. This condition is not only of Tuensang but also of Mon, Longleng and Kiphire, and all areas to the borders of Eastern Nagaland. We can never see the roads construction or any developmental activities been initiate in any parts of EN like in other parts of Nagaland anytime of the year. Recently, somebody remarked that the present Tuensang Town is like the Kohima in 1982. Which means Tuensang is about two decades behind Kohima in development. And still we cannot see any actions from the Government to bring all the parts of Nagaland at par with each other. We all know that this reason of anomalies, disparity and deprivation is one of the main hindrance to the growth and harmony of Nagaland State. In the latest declaration of Indian “Smart Cities” programme Kohima has been selected, and we are thankful and glad atleast one district has been included from the State. We hope to see Kohima smart and developed city soon. But a thing to be noted in here is that, the Government will also have to invest and make other districts smart too so that the State doesn’t appear like a house which is very developed and painted beautiful one side while the other parts of the same is left shabby and in desolation; the combination will not match. It is unimaginable if Eastern Nagaland will ever be elevated to higher grounds anytime in the future since the Government instead of bringing up all the parts of the State to equal level just goes on concentrating only in some certain pockets of Nagaland leaving aside Eastern Nagaland neglected in mostly every field. Such discrepancies are the reason why Maharashtra-Gujarat, Chattisgarh-Jarkhand-Bihar etc., and the recent Telangana-Andhra Pradesh all have to part ways. These are just some casual phenomenon that is being brought into light. There are countless inequality and deficiency that we are facing which are never attended by the Government and no hope of being acknowledged in the foreseeable future too. They are just too busy gulping down and filling their own stomachs and building their houses, bringing their Towns and City higher. As the saying goes, everyone has to make out their own success, we, Eastern Nagas have to fight for our own rights and bring our achievement ourselves. We cannot just remain silent and be trampled upon forever and go on like this. This is not in confrontation to our other Naga brethrens, Hohos, NGOs or NPGs but just our own desperation that we feel we have to sweat out to accomplishment of our aspirations. We, Eastern Nagas are the sleeping Gaint. We have to wake up, speak out and reach out for the good of all. And once we are awake nothing will ever stop us. We will go on higher, greater and invincible.
The area of Eastern Nagaland encompasses nearly half of the total geographical area of present Nagaland State and about 1/3rd of the total population. And if we are to bring in our Eastern areas and brethrens of Arunachal and Myanmar, in comparison we are much more than all the areas and tribes of whole integrated Nagaland. We have the highest number of human resource population among Naga race. We have the greater stretches of forests resources, wildlife, water store and unexplored minerals, and many more. We are not lacking in anything but just some nudge of awakening and determination to bring our people to better pasture. It’s just that they are a bit advanced in the present Nagaland State and we are being disadvantaged of Developments, Education, Communication and even Health and Livelihoods. We cannot be indifferent with them but it is through this that we have realized our strength and weaknesses. We can be much more henceforth for the cause of our people. We just have to overcome our weaknesses and invest our strength in greater prospects which will reward us with meet our needs and honour in the days ahead. Maybe it is just that our leaders are silent or that they have good plans going on. We hope and pray that the ENPO is doing all that can be done for our rightful cause and Demand. We shall not hurt the sentiments of our other Naga brothers and sisters while we speak out and reach out for our rights and stand our ground for our cause. They are also as much part of us as we are to them. It is just because of some differences and attitudes perceived that we stand for what is ours.
The twains are not meeting. Now that we have started, there is no turning back. We have to stand by our own, achieve success and govern ourselves, like we always do.
