The Konyak Nagas inhabiting in Eastern part of Nagaland State and not far from Myanmar borders, have applauded the Modi Government for developmental works in the North East but insist that the assurance given about creating an autonomous council should be implemented at the earliest.
Feared as ferocious head hunters of the mountains, Konyaks and people in Eastern Nagaland have lived isolated for centuries.
In the 1960s, a large chunk of them became part of the Nagaland State and Indian Union. Yet, the general lament is people have been living poverty-stricken and divided by clan and village loyalties for decades now. Thus the demand for a separate State was fuelled by anger and frustration.
According to many natives, the so-called political administration system has failed to build a functioning State vis-a-vis development in Eastern Nagaland. But yet, the Tuensang-Mon region’s voters have remained immensely loyal to political parties and leaders run from mainstream Nagaland -either Kohima, Mokokchung or Dimapur.
Since December 2022 now, there are some hopes. The people of Eastern Nagaland have been assured of an autonomous council by Home Minister Amit Shah. Hence there is a new hope yet again after decades – the Frontier Nagaland will trigger a seismic shift in people’s destiny.
“Now that the Government of India has promised Frontier Nagaland, it should come early. The Rio Government in Kohima or any other forces should not delay it,” Longwang Konyak, chairman of Oting Village Council, told ‘Organiser’ in his residence.
His views were readily endorsed by the Konyak Union President Tingthok Konyak. But he says the Rio Government cannot be blamed. “Even Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio understands our problems and grievances”, he says.
People in Wangla village near Oting also say the Frontier Nagaland should materialise at the earliest. “We need good roads. You have seen how bad things are by yourself …your vehicle would not have moved without help from our villagers,” a 42-year-old housewife Ellie Konyak said in reference to the hardship faced while travelling in a vehicle on the way to Oting.
Some other people in the village say Konyak people, and also those in other areas of Eastern Nagaland immediately require good policy and effective works on water supply, education, agriculture and forestry and soil conservation.
Villages such as Oting, Wangla and Hongpoi offer visitors a collection of mud-bricked houses punctuated with roads with potholes and brown dust.
Pishang Konyak, a student in Mon town, says, “In fact, statehood for Eastern Nagaland is long overdue….our forefathers should have planned and bargained hard in 1963 when they decided to be part of the new State of Nagaland. Our people in terms of landscape and population helped Nagaland got State, but we were cheated and ignored”.
Y S Konyak, a retired Government employee and an active social worker, said: “The promise was that Eastern Nagaland and rest of mainstream Nagaland will share development funds on 50:50 basis. But we were at times given only 2 to 5 per cent and there was big gift of corruption”.
Nyamto Wangsha, a former principal of a reputed educational institute, also wants Frontier Nagaland at the earliest but hastens to add that he has a few words of cautioning for all the crusaders as well. “We Nagas have a bad track record in governance. There is corruption and administrative slackness. The crisis in Eastern Nagaland is also a testimony to our failures…So, my word of cautioning is the Frontier Nagaland should not become another failure”. Nyamto Wangsha is also a member of ENPO, the influential body spearheading the movement for the creation of Frontier Nagaland.
He also says a lot of the problems in Eastern Nagaland have come due to faulty policies and failure in governance during the last few decades.
Nyamto Wangsha is, therefore, a strong proponent of the demand that money should be given to the proposed autonomous council directly. “If the money has to come via Kohima, then nothing will be achieved”.
Interestingly many Konyak leaders and even younger people in their individual capacity among Eastern Nagaland tribes say projects and developmental works implemented by the centre and the Assam Rifles have a better impact in terms of identification of projects, speed, implementation and quality in execution.
“I am neither anti-Naga nor pro-Assam Rifles. I have several complaints against them, but we all should admire how developmental works they carry out in neglected places like Oting or Naginimora. In fact, the Oting village now have an approachable road and a play ground, it is because of these forces,” says C. Thomas in Mon town.
Reacting to this, an Oting villager now staying in Tizit says, “As a citizen of this State in this region I should not be commenting much on what other people are saying. Everyone knows how Nagaland Government works. The central forces have been able to deliver whatever we did in last 15 months because people have accepted the force as well wishers on certain matters of development”.
However, Deputy Angh of Oting Village, Chengwang Konyak, clarifies, “Do not mix up matters. The Frontier Nagaland is something we want…and about security forces what went on in December 2021, people still cannot forget the agony. Now Assam Rifles is doing some good works of development. We did not ask for it.”
The seven tribes from the region – Konyaks, Sangtams, Changs, Phoms, Khiamniungans, Yimchungrus and Tikhirs have been demanding the creation of Frontier Nagaland.
Eastern Nagaland comprises six districts – Tuensang, Mon, Shamatore, Longleng, Noklak and Kiphire.
Amit Shah held the much-awaited crucial meeting with ENPO leaders on December 6, 2023, in New Delhi in the presence of the sitting BJP MP (Rajya Sabha), S Phangnon Konyak and two former MPs Asungba Sangtam and Wangyuh Konyak.
Surveys in the 1990s revealed that along the entire eastern belt of Nagaland (encompassing the six districts), a rich vein of coal, limestone, nickel, marble, cobalt and magnite. But most of these have remained untapped due to a plethora of reasons.
The people from the region have grievances about being not treated properly by mainstream Nagaland. The charge is, however, denied by mainstream politicians.
Tuensang-Mon region had joined Nagaland State since the 1960s when the 16 Point Agreement was inked between Naga public leaders under the banner of Naga People’s Convention (NPC) and the Government
of India.
No leader from the region could become Chief Minister, while Chongshen Chang (from Tuensang district) had become deputy Chief Minister in 1990 under the ministry headed by K L Chishi.
As the Pradesh Congress Chief, Chingwang Konyak had missed chief ministership in 1993 when he lost assembly polls from Wakching and later, he was not given a ticket for the Tehok assembly seat when P V Narasimha Rao was Congress president and Sushilkumar Shinde was AICC general secretary in-charge Nagaland.
Chingwang had protested and resigned as Pradesh chief. Incidentally, Chingwang now heads the NDPP – the political party of Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, who is heading an Opposition-less NDPP-BJP-NPF regime.
According to clause 10 (b) of the 16 Point (or Statehood) Agreement, there was a provision for setting up a Regional Council with elected representatives from all the tribes, and the Governor may nominate representatives to the Regional Council. It was also stated that the “Regional Council will elect members of the Naga Legislative Assembly”.
The demand for a separate State Frontier Nagaland comprising Eastern Nagaland had gained momentum in 2012 during the UPA regime at a time when the NSCN-IM was negotiating with the Government of India for the ‘unification of all Naga contiguous areas’.
Nagas reside in parts of Myanmar and also in States such as Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. The centre has earlier ruled out possibilities of redrawing the boundaries of these three North Eastern States.
The Mishra panel recently visited Nagaland and also met ENPO leaders in Dimapur. Another meeting has been slated in Guwahati on April 18.
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