Tackling insurgency in North-East

The insurgeny in North-east India has stymied the growth of the region for decades. Just after India gained independence, insurgency in the region took birth in the form of a group in Nagaland( popularly known as Naga National Council) demanding secession from Indian union. The government launched counter-offensive strategy by promulgating AFSPA in the region. The militaristic strategy failed to contain insurgency effectively as several such insurgent groups emerged later. The government then embarked on diplomatic means such as holding talks with the groups to contain armed rebellion. Though the cease-fire agreements resulted in bringing about a modicum of peace in the region, instances of violence periodically takes place as was seen in the recent killing of Indian soldiers in an ambush in Manipur.

The occurrence of such incidents drive home the fact that there are loopholes in the counter-insurgent strategy adopted by the government. Until now, the government relied on the armed forces and paramilitary forces to take on the insurgent groups. The limitation of such an approach was that the forces faced greater vulnerabilities as they had little know-how about the local terrain. Therefore, the better way was to strengthen the state police and modernize them adequately. Mizoram tackled insurgency effectively as it had a strong state police force equipped with modern technology and adequate know-how about the local conditions.

It is important to note that insurgent groups could mobilise groups and procure arms as long as they have access to financial resources. Therefore, it is imperative to cut off their access to the source of funding. Drug trafficking, illegal trade, kidnapping and extortion are the primary sources of funds for such groups, at times, in connivance with the local political leaders. Therefore, the government should show adequate political will in cracking down on such political-criminal nexus.

One of the major reasons as to why such groups operate with impunity is that they have their base camps not only within the difficult terrain and forested areas of domestic frontiers but also in neighbouring countries like Myanmar. For instance, the National Socialist Council of Nagaland led by S.Khaplang (NSCN-K) has its roots in Myanmar and operate from their bases along the Indo-Myanmar border. Unless the Myanmar government pro-actively crack down on such camps, incidents of terror would not stop in the region. The Indian government would do well to engage her neighbours in flushing these groups operating from their territories. India managed to persuade Bangladesh in flushing out ULFA base-camps from Bangladeshi territory which resulted in weakening of their influence in Assam.

In the long run, it is necessary to bridge the socio-economic disparity in the region. The North-eastern region is tremendously backward economically and unemployment looms large in the region. Consequently, the youth is attracted to such anti-national activities and do not shy in taking up arms against the state. An economically prosperous North-east is in the better interests of the nation because the marginal groups would then be dissuaded from engaging with insurgent groups in the region.