The plight of North-Easterners in India

The instances of discrimination, humiliation or harassment against the people from North-east region are increasingly making headlines in mainstream media.The racial discrimination is rampant in the National Capital Region(NCR) but also in other cities like Bangalore and Chennai.Racism is generally perceived as a social malaise that is prevalent in western societies.But,the increasing racial attacks against people from North-east in metro cities or against a south-Indian in northern heartland drives home the fact that India faces the scourge of racism in her own land.This is entirely against the vision of Mahatma Gandhi,who was stringently vocal against racial prejudices of all sorts across the world.

The statistics rather reveal a saddening picture. A survey has indicated that over 2 lakhs of people from North-East region migrated to Delhi during 2005-2013.Out of them about 86 percent have faced some sort of racial discrimination in metropolitan cities across the country. Two-thirds of women have confronted discrimination or harassment in the national capital.

What are the causes of racial attacks against the people from North-East India? The people from the region come to the metropolitan cities in search of employment opportunities. They are employed primarily in lower-paid establishments, where the employers do seek candidates having proficiency in English.This creates a sense of insecurity among the local unemployed youths who then resort to discriminating their counterparts on the basis of racial outlook.

Moreover,the people from the North-east reside in affordable lower-middle class areas in metro-cities.The conservative people, house-owners and shopkeepers look down upon them with suspicion tagging them as ‘bad people. The difference in language and dressing sense make the local people believe that they are barbaric and belong to stone-age.

There is a need to check such instances of racism in our country. In view of the rising incidents against the North-Easterners, the government had appointed a committee under the chairmanship of MP Bezbaruah to look into the issue in detail. The committee has recommended amending Indian Penal Code(IPC) to make ‘racial discrimination’ an offence. Moreover it has suggested setting up of special police units and fast-track courts so as to dispose off the cases expeditiously.

However, legal measures are necessary but not a sufficient condition for tackling such instances of racial bigotry. Change,for good,has to come from the deeper roots of human psychie. That said,people should start recognising differences and become tolerant.Recognition of differences  is vital to keep India unified and intact,especially in a nation where diversity is its fundamental civilizational nature.A good way to start would be to upgrade the educational curriculum in state-level schools and NCERTs.A detailed study about ‘North-East ethoes’ in Ncert text-books is necessary which will readily imbibe tolerance towards diversity in school-going children. Nelson Mandela had aptly expressed “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”