Unreported abductions of personnel belonging to construction companies engaged for various road projects in the State by the armed Naga political groups went on with impunity. Business community was not even spared. It was only at the intervention of the Civil Society Organisations that timely settlements were made, bringing temporal respite. Equally standing alongside the nationalists in resource extraction comes the “middlemen” fixing high rate of compensation in exchange of the parted lands to be used for development. And that is not the end. The State has its role in delaying critical infrastructure projects leading to double or even triple escalation of construction costs. Despite this whole interplay of manipulation and extraction, what drives New Delhi to continue funding these critical projects is its corresponding extractive design encrypted in India’s Act East.
Nagaland and its Northeastern states are integral and fundamental to New Delhi’s expansive investment plan in South and Southeast Asian markets. The region’s strategic location connecting larger Indian geography with flourishing markets eastward along with potent social, physical, human and natural capitals all add up to the lucrative prospects the region has to offer.
Nagaland along with its Northeastern states has assumed significance as far as policy convergence between Japan’s Free and Open Indo-Pacific and India’s Act East are concerned. Japan International Cooperation Agency’s involvement with infrastructure projects in Northeast India could be ascribed to cultural similarities Northeastern communities share with Japan’s.
In Nagaland, extension of resource politics is manifested in prioritising critical infrastructure developments (specifically roads and bridges) towards serving the ground logistic operation for military and extraction purposes, as contrasted with immediate local needs. Infrastructure enhancements are mostly centripetal – largely in the interest of the Centre. Two-laning projects in the border district of Phek could be seen as a strategic arrangement, considering that Phek district in recent past has been associated with staunch regionalism apart from being home to resource-rich Meluri Sub-Division. However, in the meantime, the Foothill Road, for instance, requiring urgent state funding is accorded less attention than it deserves.
A closer look at the developmental undertakings alluded to the two-pronged approach embedded in Act East policy – defence and extraction. First, highways linking military base to the interior and peripheral districts may well serve military to promptly avert and curb spread of centrifugal and regional ideologies. Secondly, building of highways and bridges in mineral-rich districts and which possess geographic significance to link the Indian mainland with South and Southeast Asian trading activities is linked to resource extraction. What has further strengthened this view is the lack of active involvement of local communities in planning and development perspective.
Resource politics is openly carried out by multiple Naga political groups serving demand drafts to construction companies. Public works are held to ransom. Construction of critical infrastructures is generally commissioned only after a negotiated amount is agreed to. Underhand of Naga political groups clandestinely work with local agents in exploiting forest and mineral resources. In the name of safeguarding the rich mineral resources yet with handsome royalty in mind, the Naga political groups forced stop few joint ventures.
What is more fuelling this extractive trap is the involvement of certain vested politicians. Chosen to play the indigenous-rights card, they nevertheless put their personal interest first and consider less on community interest. This practice of extraction by intricate nexus of politicians and Naga political groups funding by various agencies lead to socio-economic exploitation of local communities, dispossession and environmental damage. Politicians and Naga political groups remained calm as long as they receive their share of benefits.
Extraction is not confined to developmental activities alone. Collection, processing and dissemination of information have completely changed the socio-political landscape. Mainland media and academics had exploited the vulnerabilities prevalent among the Nagas – the great disconnect between the public and the Naga political groups, the question of identity among the young Nagas and the economic closeness with the larger Indian geography.
The general public questioned the integrity and the activities carried out by various Naga political groups, and went on to even dispute the desire for unification of all Naga tribes and further the distance instead of bridging the gap. The young urban population who never heard of the atrocities bequeathed to our forefathers has started to challenge our history and discredit the oral tradition. This is inevitable in the absence of documentation to authenticate. Further, Nagas themselves embraced the belief that the Nagas’ theory of a nation will collapse once the influx of funds is stopped. This meta-change in behaviour and mindset is largely attributed to application of “reflexive control” theory, enabled by processing of metadata and behavioural analytics. Reflexive control is achieved by preparing a “specially information” to the target “to incline him to voluntarily make the predetermined decision desired by the initiator of the action”. It works particularly in two specific areas – firstly, relating Hinduism to the traditional animistic belief system and reflecting the idea that Christianity is the by-product of colonialism and therefore foreign to our belief system and non-indigenous; secondly, interpreting the rights of indigenous people in relation to the complex power dynamics at the geopolitical stage to keep the rights of indigenous community at bay. Perhaps, a major breakthrough for heavy presence of academics linked to RSS and its ideologues in premier institutions.
It has completely changed the beliefs of the leadership and citizenry alike. Yet, what still keeps the various Naga political groups from mustering public sympathy is their arrogance in not finding means and ways to actively connect with their own people. Extracted resources are classified personal assets, and invested for personal interest only. If their claim of being representing the Nagas and mandated by the Naga people means business, they would have atleast extended assistance to their own people when the lives of the poor, destitute and vulnerable were exposed and left to survive on their own during the last two consecutive lockdown periods. Do they even have sympathy for our people? Do they even care our history? Do they even have study-centre(s) to help students learning our “true” history?
Our history and our rich culture will meet its demise so long as we derive thrill in resource politics. It is high time that we introspectively reconfigure our whole being to re-align ourselves with the changing dynamics. A robust educational system which would empower students to employ their feelings into political consciousness and thus action. Unilateral transmission of static truths, as is the present system of education, limits the students’ quest for independent learning. In the meantime, the academic community must restore our people from the above fallacious beliefs by dissemination of true information, and countering information with information sourced from far distance. The Naga political groups have great responsibility in establishing institutions of excellence with the extracted public resources.
Right information is central to harnessing our huge human capital in bridging the great divide and in re-awakening our confused society.
Nukhosa Chuzho
khozch@gmail.com