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GSO (S5) 01 (M/P) Exam Code : SOP5A / SOM5A Sociology of Northeast India SEMESTER V SOCIOLOGY BLOCK - 2 KRISHNA KANTA HANDIQUI STATE OPEN UNIVERSITY Subject Experts 1. Professor Jyoti Prasad Saikia, 2. Dr. Nirmali Goswami, Tezpur University, Tezpur Course Co-ordinator : Dr. Gargi Gayan, Asst. Prof. (KKHSOU) SLM Preparation Team UNITS CONTRIBUTORS 8, 9 Madhuja Handique 10 Udeepta Phukan 11 Dr. Piyashi Dutta, Assistant Professor, Amity University 12 Priyanku Hazarika 13 Rituparna Choudhury Editorial Team Content (English Version) : Dr. Shabeena Yasmin Saikia, Associate Professor, (GU) Language (English Version) : Dr. Labiba Alam Structure, Format & Graphics: Dr. Gargi Gayan, Asst. Prof. KKHSOU June , 2019 This Self Learning Material (SLM) of the Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 License (international): http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Printed and published by Registrar on behalf of the Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University. Headquarters: Patgaon, Rani Gate, Guwahati-781017 City Office: Housefed Complex, Dispur, Guwahati-781006; Web: www.kkhsou.in The University acknowledges with thanks the financial support provided by the Distance Education Bureau, UGC for preparation of this material. BACHELOR OF ARTS THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES IN SOCIOLOGY DETAILED SYLLABUS BLOCK-2 UNIT 8: ETHNIC IDENTITY IN NORTHEAST INDIA: Page : 117-136 Ethnicity: Meaning and Characteristics; Intercommunity relations and its changing nature; Ethnic Conflict. UNIT 9: AUTONOMY MOVEMENTS IN ASSAM: Page : 137-149 Autonomy: Meaning and Concept; Demand for Sixth Schedule; Demand for separate homeland; Causes and Its implications in Intercommunity relations UNIT 10: INSURGENCY IN NORTHEAST INDIA: Page : 150-161 Origin and Development of insurgency in the region; Major insurgent groups UNIT 11: LAND RELATION IN NORTHEAST INDIA: Page : 162-173 Land holding patterns, agrarian structure UNIT 12: ECONOMIC PROBLEMS IN NORTH EAST INDIA: Page : 174-188 Unemployment, Infrastructure, Industrialization UNIT 13: DEVELOPMENT IN NORTHEAST INDIA: Page : 189-198 North Eastern Council (NEC), The Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDoNER), Look East Policy BLOCK INTRODUCTION This is the second block of the course. This block consists of six units. The first unit of this block is unit 8 which is titled as Ethnic identity in Northeast India. This unit will discuss the concept of ethnicity and the intercommunity relation among different ethnic communities in the northeastern region. The second unit of this block is Unit 9 which is titled as Autonomy movements in Assam This unit will discuss the different autonomy movements undertaken by different ethnic groups in Assam. The third unit is unit 10, which is titled as Insurgency in Northeast India. This unit will discuss the origin and development of insurgency in the region. The fourth unit is unit 11, which is titled as Land relation in Norteast India . This unit will discuss the land holding pattern and the agrarian structure. The fifth unit is unit 12, which is titled as Economic problems in Northeast India. This unit will discuss about unemployment, infrastructure and industrialisation in the northeastern region. The sixth unit is unit 13. This unit is titled as Development in Northeast India This unit will discuss about the initiatives underken by various agencies like the Norteastern Council, The Ministery of Development of Northeastern Region (MDONER) and Lookeast policy to accelerate the development process in the region. While going through this block, you may also notice some text boxes, which have been included to help you know some of the difficult terms and concepts. You will also read about some relevant ideas and concepts in “LET US KNOW” along with the text. We have kept “CHECK YOUR PROGRESS” questions in each unit. These have been designed to self-check your progress of study. The hints for the answers to these questions are given at the end of the unit. We strongly advise you to answer the questions immediately after you finish reading the section in which these questions occur. We have also included a few books in the “FURTHER READINGS” which will be helpful for your further consultation. The books referred to in the preparation of the units have been added at the end of the block. UNIT 8: ETHNIC IDENTITY IN NORTH-EAST INDIA UNIT STRUCTURE 8.1 Learning Objectives 8.2 Introduction 8.3 Ethnic and Ethnicity 8.3.1 Meaning and Characteristics of Ethnic groups 8.3.2 Meaning and Characteristics of Ethnicity 8.3.3 Approaches to the study of Ethnicity 8.3.4 Ethnic Identity 8.4 Inter Community Relation within North East Region of India 8.4.1 Assam in Pre British Era 8.4.1.1 Tribal and Foreign Relations 8.4.2 British Era 8.4.2.1 The relationship with immigrant communities 8.4.2.2 The Relationship between Nagas and Kukis 8.4.3 Independence Era 8.4.3.1 The Relationship between Nagas and Kukis 8.5 The changing Nature of Inter Community Relation among North East Region of India 8.6 Ethnic Conflict in North East India 8.6.1 Government Policy 8.6.2 Foreign Policy Imperatives 8.7 Let us sum up 8.8 Further Reading 8.9 Answer to check your progress 8.10 Model questions 8.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES After going through this unit you will be able to – • know about the Meaning and Characteristics of Ethnicity. • explain the scenario of inter-community relations in North-east India. Sociology of Northeast India 117 Unit 8 Ethnic Identity in North-East India • understand the causes of the changing nature of inter-community relationship among the ethnic groups of North-east India. • know about the root causes of ethnic conflict in North-east India. 8.2 INTRODUCTION The North-eastern region represents India’s most complex landscape with multi-lingual, multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and multi-religious societal context. It is a land of lovely woods and trees, of clustering fruits and of groves dense with trees and sounds of silence. The North-eastern region of India is a splendidly vibrant region which is situated in the eastern part of the sub-Himalayan zone. The region compromises of lofty mountainous terrain and moderately high hills and river-fed valleys. At present the eight states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya and Sikkim are regarded as constituting the North-east India. Surrounded by five Countries, this region is connected with the rest of India through a narrow thirty kilometer corridor located in northern Bengal. Different ethnic groups inhabiting this region have been pressing either for the creation of separate states on the basis of their lingo-cultural identities or for special constitutional safeguards of their respective identities. “What is your ethnicity?” This is a question that is fairly important in many parts of the world. The United States, like many countries, finds this question to be substantial enough to include on the national census. It is a question we are all familiar with, but do we know what is really being asked here? An ethnic group is a population with shared genetic and cultural traits, making them distinct from other populations because of these traits. If you think that sounds somewhat vague, you are right. Ethnicity is important to us, but that does not necessarily mean that it is easy to define. Let us learn more about the concept in the subsequent sections. 8.3 ETHNIC AND ETHNICITY 8.3.1 Meaning and Characteristics of Ethnic group Ethnic group is a group whose members have same or all of the following characteristics. 118 Sociology of Northeast India Ethnic Identity in North-East India Unit 8 Share a sense of common right. Claim a common and distinctive history and destiny. Possess one or more dimensions of collective cultural individuality. Feel a sense of unique solidarity. So, an Ethnic group is defined as “any hereditary group with shared values, style of life and symbol of identity and consciousness of kind”. The word ‘Ethnic’ became popular in the post war period and during1960s and 1970s, when Regionalism Movements in Western Europe and the Black Movement in the United States became prominent. However, the English term ‘ethnic’ was in usage since the middles ages and in the New Testament it was employed as a synonym of ‘gentile’, implying the non-Christian and non-Jewish pagans. Different scholars are using it to mean ‘a group of people with shared characteristics’, however, the use of this term in the modern sense has been varied. For some this would indicate the immigrant community or the minority within a larger social structure while for some others it would encompass every community with a common culture and history, as Everett C. Hughes (1970) declares “we are all ethnic”. The term ‘ethnic’ is a derivative of the Greek term ‘ethnos’. Ethnos in classical Greek described the undifferentiated groups of animals and warriors and also as Aristotle used it to mean the foreign and barbarian nations. From being used to denote the ‘non- structured, tribal, peripheral people’ in classical Greek it came to be used specifically for the non- Christian and non-Hebrews during the Middles ages. It was used for indicating religious otherness. However, its application changed even when the meaning continued to be the same. During the times of the Ottoman empire when the orthodox Christians became the most prominent religious other, the term ‘ethnos’ came to be employed by the Greeks to refer to themselves. Sociology of Northeast India 119 Unit 8 Ethnic Identity in North-East India Later, during the emergence of modern nationalism among the Greeks in the early nineteenth century, the term ethnos came to be seen as a ‘quintessentially self-realising, self-defining entity’.
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