Introduction:
In recent years, the issues of human migration and its impacts on the socio-economic and cultural life of the people is being widely debated throughout the world. In simple language, migration means movement of people from one place to other in search of better living condition. However, a large scale migration of the people may affect the demographic characteristics of a state or a nation. As a result, conflict may occur between the aborigines and the migrants leading to large scale human rights violations. The prime objective of this paper is to highlight the issues of human migration in the North Eastern part of India and its impacts on the socio-economic and cultural identity of the people in the region.
It is well known fact that the present North Eastern states (earlier undivided Assam plus Manipur, Tripura and Sikkim)[1] of India have been the safe destinations of various streams of interstate and international migrants during the colonial and post-colonial period. Large number of new social groups like Nepalis, Marwaris, Biharis, Hindu Bengalis, Muslim Bengalis, Chinese, Americans, British and tea garden laborers (Black Tribals) migrated into the North Eastern part of India during the colonial period[2]. The pull factors of the migration in the North East India are the soft British policies towards migration, large area of virgin fertile land, rich natural resources and abundance of employment avenues in newly emerging tea Industries and various institutions of the region. Besides, there are other avenues like Coal and Oil production, construction of roads, railways and buildings which attracted the immigrant laborers.[3] On the other hand, scarcity of land, employment and natural resources had been the push factors for outmigration in East Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Orissa, Jharkhand and Bihar. In order to handle Santal movement in Jharkhand and to meet the scarcity of the laborers in the Tea Gardens of Assam, the Colonial administration brought a huge number of laborers from Jharkhand in the early period of 20th century. However, the most alarming influx of foreign migrants occurred in 1945/46 while large number of Bangladeshi migrants were imported in Assam under the policy of “Grow More Food” by the then Chief Minister-Mahammad Sadullah. This policy of Mr Sadullah brought large number of Bangladeshi migrants and changed the demographic pattern of the region.[4] Then comes the partition of India (15th August, 1947) and the Bangladesh War of Independence (1970s) which resulted into large scale migration into the region. The following table (table No-1) may substantiate this phenomenon.
Table-1: Population Growth in Assam*: 1901-1991[5]
| Year | Growth rate, Assam | Growth rate, All India | Variation |
| 1901-1911 | 16.99 | 5.73 | 11.26 |
| 1911-1921 | 20.48 | -0.31 | 20.78 |
| 1921-1931 | 19.91 | 11.0 | 8.91 |
| 1931-1941 | 20.40 | 14.22 | 6.62 |
| 1941-1951 | 19.93 | 13.31 | 6.62 |
| 1951-1961 | 34.98 | 21.51 | 13.34 |
| 1961-1971 | 34.95 | 24.80 | 10.15 |
| 1971-1991** | 52.44 | 48.24 | 4.2 |
*Assam before 1963 includes present Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland. Nagaland, Meghalaya, Arunachal and Mizoram were separated from Assam in 1963, 1971, 1986 and 1986 respectively. Therefore, up to 1961census Assam represents whole of North East India with exception of Tripura, Manipur and Sikkim.
** No census was conducted in Assam in 1981. Hence the growth rate is for twenty Years from 1971-1991.
Estimations of the Total Migrants in the North eastern part of India:
There is no consensus of estimation regarding the number of total migrants in the North Eastern part of India. Besides, the whole of North Eastern part of India with exception to Manipur, Tripura and Sikkim had been within the fold of undivided Assam till 1963. And this process of separation from Assam had completed only in 1986 with the separation of Mizoram and Meghalaya. Therefore, lack of sufficient information and evidences had been a major challenge while writing about North East Issues.
Census of India, 1921 has estimated the number of total migrants in Assam at 411941 during 1911-1921.[6] Likewise, Anil Saikia, H Goswami and A Goswami have estimated the number of foreign migrants in Assam at 1337015 during 1951-1991.[7] Amalendu Guha has also estimated that the number of post-1951 settlers with questionable citizenship status would in no case exceed 13 lakhs.[8] All Assam Students Union and Gana Sangram Parishad have also estimated the number at 45 Lakhs.[9] Susanta K Das believes that the population growth in Assam from 1901-1951 “has been the second highest in the world, exceeded only by Brazil”[10]
In Tripura, flows of refugee and migrants became alarming during 1940s and 1950s. “By 1958, 374,000 refugees had entered Tripura and massive rehabilitation was carried out. By 1960, 70,000 families were rehabilitated, of whom 34,000 were settled in 75 colonies in Agartala and the rest in different places.”[11] However, the flow of migrants and refugee continued to be unabated till the Bangladesh war of liberation. Yet the attitude of the Government of India as well as the state Government towards the migration problem is not appreciable. Even after many decades, the fencing of Indo-Bangladesh international Border has left incomplete.
Human Migration, Cultural Identity and Ethnic Conflicts:
This issue of immigration has, in the long run, created problems in the region. The aboriginals or the indigenous peoples of the region have felt that they being alienated from their own land as a result of large scale immigration. They further felt that the problem of continuous illegal migration has become a threat to the cultural identity of the indigenous people. This resulted into the mushrooming of extremist groups and the outbreak of several movements in the region for the protection and preservation of indigenous cultural identity. Assam Movement and Bodoland Movement in Assam and tribal movements in Tripura may be mentioned in this regard. The main goals of the Assam Movement were: to detect, deport and disfranchise the foreign nationals from the electoral roll of Assam.[12] Similar were the main objectives of tribal movement in Tripura.
Ethnic Conflicts and Issues of Human Rights Violations:
Those movements in the long run, has resulted into large scale human rights violation in the region. During the Assam movement (1979-85), a minimum of 471 cases of bomb blasts were reported to the police where at least 101 people lost their life (Table-2).[13] On 18th February 1983, over 1200 people (mostly women and children) were butchered to death at Nellie in Nagaon district of Assam.[14] Monirul Hussain has described this incident of Assam movement as “one of the largest and severest pogroms that contemporary world has recorded. It has only a few parallels in the post-second world war history”[15] Likewise, at least 1135 Bodo people had lost their life during the Bodoland movement from 1987-93.[16] More than 150,000 people were left homeless and had to settle down in different relief camps without government relief, rehabilitation and medical care. According to the report of ABSU to the then Prime Minister of India (V.P. Singh), over 200 Bodo inmates died out of starvation and another 93 Bodo inmates died due to lack of medical care in Gohpur (Assam) itself.[17] In Tripura also, 1,300 people lost their lives, 3,77,048 were left 34,661 houses were burnt and 1,89,919 people were displaced as a result of tribal ethnic movements .[18] The violence of the riot was so brutal that even children were not spared.
Table-2: No of Bomb-blasts and number of death during 1979-84.
| year | Number of blasts | Number of deaths |
| 1979 | 4 | 0 |
| 1980 | 47 | 8 |
| 1981 | 81 | 5 |
| 1982 | 39 | 27 |
| 1983 | 259 | 55 |
| 1984 | 41 | 6 |
| Total | 471 | 101 |
Source: Monirul Hussain, The Assam Movement: Class, Ideology and Identity, Manas Publication, 1995.
Conclusion:
Migration has a close link with the cultural identity of a particular group of people. A large scale migration of people in a particular place brings pressure to the land of the indigenous people of the region. It leads to the problems of land alienation and as a result, may be treated as a threat to the socio-economic and cultural identity of the indigenous people. Large scale skilled and unskilled human migration in the North Eastern part of India was treated as a threat to the socio-economic and cultural identity of the people in the region and several movements were launched by different groups of community for the protection and preservation of their cultural identity which brought a large scale of human tragedies. Therefore, it is suggestive that the issue of migration should be tackled with utmost care for a peaceful future of the region. The fencing of India-Bangladesh International Border at the earliest is an important task to be completed by the Government of India and Bangladesh. This will bring a sense of security in the mind of indigenous people. Issuing of voter”s identity card to every eligible (for vote) citizen may also be helpful. Besides, the vote bank politics should be eliminated from the region. For this, all section of the people including the police personals as well as the administrators should put their hand together.
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End Notes:
[1] Assam before 1963 includes present Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland. Nagaland, Meghalaya, Arunachal and Mizoram were separated from Assam in 1963, 1971, 1986 and 1986 respectively.
[2] Manirul Hussain, The Assam Movement: Class, Ideology and Identity, Manas Publication, 1995, P-47.
[3] Sanjib Baruah, “India Against Itself”, Oxford University Press, 2011 (reprint), p-46.
[4] Report on Illegal Migration into Assam Submitted to the President of India(K.R. Narayana) by the Governor of Assam (S.K. Sinha) on November8, 1998.
[5] Sanjib Baruah, op. cit. p-51.
[6] Sanjib Baruah, op. cit., p-57.
[7] Anil Saikia, H Goswami and A Goswami, “Population Growth in Assam 1951-1991 with Focus on Migration”, Akansha Publishing House, New Delhi, 2003, p-114.
[8] Abu Nasar Saiied Ahmed, “Nationality Question in Assam: The EPW 1980-81 Debate”, Omeo Kumar Das Institute of Social Science and Development (Guwahati) and Akansha Publishing House, New Delhi, 2006, p-93.
[9] Ibid, p-93.
[10] As Quoted in Sanjib Baruah”s “India Against Itself”, Oxford University Press, 2011 (reprint), p-50.
[11] Bijan Mohanta, Tripura since 1945, Progressive Publication, Calcutta, 2004, p-89.
[12] Monirul Hussain, op. cit, p-117.
[13]. Ibid, p-143.
[14] Ibid, p-141.
[15] Ibid, p-141.
[16] K. Brahma, “Bodoland Movement and the Issues of Human Rights Violation” in K. Paul (Ed) “Human Rights: Contemporary Issues”, Avishek Printers & Publishers, Silchar (Assam), 2011, p-92.
[17] Ibid, p-91.
[18] Manas Paul, “The Eyewitness”, Lancer, New Delhi, 2009, p. 76.
References:
1. Ahmed ,Abu Nasar Saiied: “Nationality Question in Assam: The EPW 1980-81 Debate”, Omeo Kumar Das Institute of Social Science and Development (Guwahati) and Akansha Publishing House, New Delhi, 2006, p-93.
2. Baruah, Sanjib: “India Against Itself”, Oxford University Press, 2011 (reprint).
3. Hussain, Manirul: The Assam Movement: Class, Ideology and Identity, Manas Publication, 1995.
4. Mohanta, Bijan: Tripura since 1945, Progressive Publication, Calcutta, 2004.
5. Paul, K. (Ed) “Human Rights: Contemporary Issues”, Avishek Printers & Publishers, Silchar (Assam), 2011.
6. Paul, Manas: “The Eyewitness”, Lancer, New Delhi, 2009, p. 76.
7. Report on Illegal Migration into Assam Submitted to the President of India (K.R. Narayana) by the Governor of Assam (S.K. Sinha) on November8, 1998.
8. Saikia, Anil., Goswami H and Goswami, A: “Population Growth in Assam 1951-1991 with Focus on Migration”, Akansha Publishing House, New Delhi, 2003.
9. World migration report,2010
Dear Brahma, great presentation, come to BU and share your views.
ReplyDeletewith regards, J P