#arunachal

Shungetser Lake, Arunachal Pradesh

What is 'Northeast India’?

The term refers to a region in the easternmost part of India, which indicates a political division that falls under the jurisdiction of the Indian state

It consists of 8 states: Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura. All of these states are recognized under the NEC (North Eastern Council), a body in charge of development in these states

Why does it matter?

Short, blunt answer with zero nuance: the entire region is othered by the rest of the country.

Longer answer:

For starters, let’s take a look at this map depicting the territories the Indian state claims and governs. The red highlighted parts indicate which states comprise the northeast. Right off the bat, it’s geographically isolated from the mainland, connected to the rest of the nation through a thin strip of land called the ‘chicken neck’. Most states in the Northeast therefore share more borders with other nations than with the nation that governs them. Borderlands in any nation state assume strategic importance.

Second, most of the states in the northeast are granted special status in Article 371 of the Indian Constitution. This is due to their history with the central administration, and the manner in which each state was acquired by the Indian state.

Third, cultures, religions and traditions in among northeastern communities are markedly different from those one might see in the mainland. Most native languages spoken there are not derived from Indo-European languages as many other prominent Indian ones, but instead are from Mon-Khmer, and Tibeto-Burman language families.

Last, and most apparent: physical appearance. Most of the residents and native communities in the northeast do not look stereotypically Indian, which then leads to xenophobia, discrimination, racism, and violence when they interact with people from the mainland. 

All of these factors contribute to the othering of the northeast and a tendency to view this diverse region as homogenous. Political history and a general attitude of neglect from the central administration has also contributed immensely to poor relations between the mainland and the northeast. Insurgency, military repression, environmental degradation, settler colonialism, and erasure of indigenous culture has persisted ever since Indian independence.

Being informed about the northeast is the first step to ensure that people from this region can live without being cornered, assimilated, and erased.

You say 'northeast' instead of 'northeast India'. Is there anything I should know about the term ‘Northeast India’?

Yes. Multiple ethnic groups have demanded separate nations for themselves (eg. Nagalim). Northeast India or Northeast Indian is a loaded term. 

What should I use then?

It depends on the context. If it’s evident that you’re talking about the region within Indian jurisdiction, ‘the northeast’ will do just fine. However, if you must specify ‘northeast India’, do make sure you also communicate how loaded of a term it is.

This is all complicated.

There’s no denying that it is! If anyone expects simplicity and easy answers when learning about the Northeast, prepare to be disappointed. (That goes for learning about any community or region, really)

Thank you for reading this far! Please share my posts to spread awareness and information about this wonderful region. If you’re interested in learning more about the northeast, please follow this blog! As far as I’m aware, there is extremely little content regarding the northeast on this platform (or any accessible platform really), and I really want to fill that gap. I will be posting news, art, culture, academic literature and more.

Two old Idu - Mishmi Ladies , Arunachal_Pradesh, Roing, India