Ignorance about NE    

An overwhelming majority of people belong-ing to India’s mainland often exhibit signifi-cant ignorance about its Northeastern region, overlooking its rich cultural tapestry, unique ecological diversity, and complex socio-political histories. This has led to a kind of dangerous cultural insensitivity and a horrible racial bias, which often pushes the Northeasterner into a difficult situation in other parts of the country. There was a time when the powers that be in Delhi could not imagine that India also existed beyond Bengal in the east. Even after 78 years of India attaining independence, a sizable section of people across the country—including the educated and the intellectual—continue to suffer from that. Unfortunately, this has happened despite the integral role the Northeastern region has played in India’s identity, including its vibrant, diverse oral traditions and distinct tribal societies. It is sad to note that very few across the country, including a large chunk of highly qualified people who teach in reputed universities and shape hundreds of young minds and hold high posts, are unaware or ignorant about the contributions of the people of the Northeast towards the making of modern India. One glaring example at hand is a senior professor who was until the other day heading a reputed central university in the region but had to flee after inviting the wrath of the community on his own campus by exposing his level of ignorance and showing disrespect to a great cultural icon like Zubeen Garg. This lack of awareness does not stem just from geographical distance and limited media portrayal of the region. Neglect of the region has been historical, with so-called mainstream narratives painting the Northeast as a land of uncivilized and backward people. What’s worse is that decades went by after India attained independence, with school and college textbooks keeping the Northeast out of the syllabus. Millions of Indian children have grown up without being taught about the various regions of the country. It must also be borne in mind that the national education system often provides a limited or biased view of the region’s history, geography, and cultures, thus depriving generation after generation of young people of knowing fully about the country as a whole. One of the most important and most dangerous outcomes of his ignorance is that it fuels racism and discrimination, with people from the Northeast often facing prejudice in other parts of India, highlighting a deep cultural disconnect. A lack of understanding of the Northeast among people from other parts of the country, on the other hand, contributes to the region’s feeling of being a peripheral part of India, impacting policy focus and resource allocation.