Report on North-East India

The Development Paradigm

M Biswanath Sinha Contact: mbiswanath@yahoo.com

Introduction to North-East India: The Indian North-East region has been witness of historical confront and confusion. The territorial possession is disputed; the recognition of peoples need is abysmal. With more than 220 ethnic groups with equal number of dialects makes it hugely diverse region. Likewise, bio-diversity in the region too is very huge (this has been discussed later). It is matter of academic debate about the merit of clubbing the region as a socio-political entity, particularly in light of such diversity. This report is not for such discussion but for giving an overview of the region vis--vis development scenario there. Although, most of the recent policy and study include Sikkim also within the region, in this report Sikkim has been excluded, believing that overall issues there would be in similar lines with that of seven statesAssam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura, which constitute the North-East region. Area and Population of North-East Region: Population: The population of North-East region is 38.50 million in 2001 according to the Census of India. Out of this, Assam alone accounts for 26.64 million. Mizoram has the lowest population of less than a million, i.e. only 0.891 million. The average population density in the region is 147 persons per square kilometer. But this varies from state to state and within the states too. While Assam and Tripura have a fairly high population density of 340 and 304 persons per square kilometer respectively, Aruanchal Pradesh has the figure at only 13. In Tripura, again the density of population is much higher in the small valleys than the hilly areas. The decadal growth of population in majority of the states is higher than the national average. Table 1: Area and population of the NE states: States Geographical area Square kms Population (thousands) 1981 1991

1971

2001 1,027,015,247

INDIA Arunachal Pradesh Nagaland Manipur Mizoram Tripura Meghalaya Assam 83743 16579 22327 21081 10486 22489 78438 468 516 1073 332 1556 1012 628 773 1434 488 2060 1328

865 1,091 1216 1,989 1837 2,389 686 891 2745 3,191 1775 2,306 26,638 143883

255143 Source: Provisional Census data, Census of India, 2001. Table 2: Decadal growth rate in North-East region of India Decadal growth rate in North-East India

3 India/ State/ 2 INDIA Arunachal Pradesh Nagaland Manipur Mizoram Tripura Meghalaya Assam Decade 194119511951 1961 7 8 13.31 NA 12.30 12.80 28.42 24.56 8.97 19.93 21.64 NA 73.35 35.04 35.61 78.71 27.03 34.98

19011911 3 5.75 NA 46.76 21.71 10.64 32.48 15.71 16.99

19111921 4 -0.31 NA 6.55 10.92 7.90 32.59 7.21 20.48

19211931 5 11.00 NA 12.62 16.04 26.42 25.63 13.83 19.91

19311941 6 14.22 NA 6.04 14.92 22.81 34.14 15.59 20.40

19611971 9 24.80 38.91 39.88 37.53 24.93 36.28 31.50 34.95

19711981 10 24.66 35.15 50.05 32.46 48.55 31.92 32.04 23.36

19811991 11 23.86 36.83 56.08 29.29 39.70 34.30 32.86 24.24

19912001 12 21.34 26.21 64.41 30.02 29.18 15.74 29.94 18.85

Source: Provisional Census data, Census of India, 2001. Special Physiographic Characteristics of Northeast Region: The entire region of NorthEast can be broadly divided into two characteristic zones- Mountainous and Plain. Although distinguished in the altitude differences, both the mountain and plain are closely interrelated in terms of natural resource sharing and economic flow. Thus, classifying the region in just two categories might be misleading. The region in particular suffers from in-built difficulties of its own, which renowned economist Dr. N.S. Jodha attributes as the follows: Inaccessibility: It is a constraint because of logistical problems of utilisation and recycling of resources is difficult. Fragility: Steep slops make any activity difficult in mountain. This prevents large-scale land use. Marginality: This leads to low pay-off option and high utilisation cost of resources. Diversity: It is indicated by heterogeneity and is manifested by physical and biological differences over short distances. Niche: Special situational patterns like irrigation, hydropower potential, timber, tourism, minerals and medicinal plants etc are dominant. Mr. Jayanta Bandopadhay, another scholar later described the distinguishing features of the mountains with the help of what he called mountain characteristics. He emphasised on cognitive integration and correlations of more other levels. The characteristics he ascribed as typical of region are as below:

Primary characteristics:

Vertical formation and slope. Structural fragility, Climatic/ biological diversity and Ecological complexity.

Environmental Characteristics:

Socio-economic Characteristics:

Low level of accessibility, Restricted scope for land development, Climatic advantages/hazards, Rich water resources and hydro potential, Ethnic and cultural diversity and

4 Proneness to marginalisation.

Land and Biodiversity of North East India The North East India is rich in biological diversity and contains more than one-third of the countrys total biodiversity. The region is considered one of the 18 hotspots of the world. The region has at least 7500 flowering plants, 700 orchids, 58 bamboos, 64 citrus, 28 conifers, 500 mosses, 700 ferns and 728 lichen species. The region is equally rich in faunal diversity. An estimated 3624 species of insects, 50 molluscs, 236 fishes, 64 amphibians, 137 reptiles, 541 birds and 160 mammalian species have been identified so far. The region is also rich in terms of genetic and ecosystem diversity. Some of the important gene pools of citrus, banana and rice are reported to have originated from this region. The ecosystem diversity of the region ranges from tropical ecosystems to alpine ecosystems in the Himalayan ranges and also includes wetlands, flood plains, riverines and aquatic ecosystems. A wide variety of man-modified ecosystems such as jhum (one way of shifting Cultivation) agro-ecosystem, wet rice agro-ecosystem and alder based agro-ecosystem contribute towards the rich ecosystem diversity. An estimated 33% of the total biological diversity of the region is endemic (Barik at al). Table 3: Status of Forest Cover in Northeast India (area in sq km) State Geographical Total forest Recorded Government Community area cover forest forest* used/controlle (FSI, 2000) cover d forest** (as per State Govt record) Arunachal 83,743 68,847 (82.2%) 51,540 18,593 32,949 Pradesh Assam 78,438 23,688 (30.1%) 30,708 21,520 9,188 Manipur 22,327 17,384 (77.8%) 15,154 5,634 9,520 Meghalaya 22,429 15,633 (69.6%) 9,496 903 8,593 Mizoram 21,081 18,338 (86.9%) 15,935 7,077 8,858 Nagaland 16,579 14,164 (85.4%) 8,629 1,163 7,462 Tripura 10,486 5,745 (54.7%) 6,293 4,097 + -2,195# Total 2,55,083 1,63,799 1,37,755 61,180 76,570 (Source: MoEF, NE RO, Shillong, 2000) N.B.: (a) * Government forests are classified or recorded under three categories, viz., Reserved Forest, Protected Forest and Unclassed Forest. (b) **Community used/controlled forests as in Arunachal Pradesh are generally termed as Unclassed State Forests (USF) in the official parlance. (c) #Unclassified Government Forests in Tripura are not necessarily owned or controlled by the communities; hence shown as Govt. Forest. Natural Resources: Agriculture: In the whole NE region agriculture system is predominantly traditional. The overall geographical land-to-man ratio for the NE region (0.81 Hectares/Person) is much higher than the National average (0.39 Hectares/Person). This could be attributed to the fact that the areas covered by hills in this region are more in comparison to the national average. Among the NE States the geographical land-to-man ratio is highest in Arunachal Pradesh (9.69 Hectares/Person) and lowest in Assam (0.35 Hectares/Person). About 80 % of the farmers in the NE region belongs to the small (< 1.44 ha) and marginal (< 0.40 ha) category. Over the years the average land holding is reducing owing to the increase in population in a rapid pace.

Although, land-to-man ratio is high, the average size of land holding for the NE region (1.60 ha) is almost same as the national average in India (1.57 ha). Among the NE States the average size of land holding is highest in Nagaland (6.92 ha) and lowest in Tripura (0.97 ha). About 55.6 % of the holding are of size of only 0.43 hectare or less. This is primarily because hilly terrain constitutes nearly two-thirds of the regions geographical area. Subsistence farming, therefore, is predominant in the NE region and there is hardly any commercial surplus. The percentage of cultivable area over the geographical area in the region (24.69 %) is much less than the national average (59.22 %). Again, there is a not similar pattern among the states Meghalaya having about 47% of its geographical area under cultivation against merely 3.5% in Arunachal Pradesh. The percentage utilisation of cultivable area in the NE region (62.04 %) is less than the national average (73.05 %) and mono cropping is the predominant method of cultivation. In the absence of multi-cropping little or no surplus is generated in the agricultural sector. The utilisation is lowest in Meghalaya (19.18 %) and highest in Tripura (89.35 %). Among all the NE States, Assam has the highest area both in terms of available cultivable land and net sown land. Forests: Forest constitutes about 64% of the total geographical area of the North Eastern Region. The percentage of forest area is highest in Mizoram (86.9%) and lowest in Assam (30.1%). The percentage of forest area in other North East states is illustrated in Table No 3. In the interior, timber and minor forest produce are the principal source of livelihood. The ownership pattern of forests also differs in the different states of the region. In the hilly regions, the ownership rests with the local communities and, therefore, the proportion of reserved forests in those hill states is quite small. In view of the alarming rate of extraction of timber and resulting deforestation in the forests in the North-East, there has been a blanket ban on logging and non-forest activities in forest land by the Supreme Court of India in the recent past. Land: On account of lower population density the overall land-to-man ratio in the region is quite favorable. The average size of operational land holding is however, quite small. Majority of the farmers from this region belong to small and marginal category due to the fact mentioned above. Unfavorable terrain and recurring floods etc are major obstacles for development of agriculture. According to the report of Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE, September 1999) on land utilization, out of the 25.51 lakh hectare of the total geographical area of the region, 22.48 lakh hectare (86.12 %) is available for various types of land uses. Of the total reporting area, net area sown forms only 17.38 % whereas at the national level it is about 46.64%. As mentioned above the geographical features of this region is very peculiar and that is why a qualitative comparison with land utilization pattern in the country might not give a fair picture. For instance as per CMIE report a total of 52.38 % of the regions area (in 1995-96) was under forests as against 22.57 % in the country, and this cant be put to cultivation, in most of the cases. Mineral resources: The North-East region has got a considerable natural and mineral resource reserves. It hosts the countrys 37% of river waters, 20% of the hydrocarbon (oil & gas) potential, large quantities of low ash coal resources, limestone and dolomite deposits as well as a few other minerals, yet to be explored in its full potential. Water resources could prove to be very vital in the economic development of the area. The following Table shows the major natural resource base of the region. Table 4: Mineral Reserves in North-East Region (in million tons) Coal Proven 327.268 Lime-stone 181.283 Oil & Gas Clay 0.5947 Dolomite Quartzite Graphite -

Probable Possible

253.36 450.978

888.505 4412.88

2323

20.1427 93.565

246.97

19.668

84.973

Handloom: Handlooms is a rich village industry in most of the states in the region. This in most of the cases, is a hereditary occupation. Some of the handloom products, which are known for their excellent craftsmanship are - carpets of Arunachal Pradesh, Muga silk products of Assam, Lashingphee of Manipur, Shawls of Nagaland and Mizoram. Other common handloom products such as bed Sheets, Scurf, Jackets are produced in almost all the States of the region. Sericulture: Sericulture comprises the culture of four varieties of silk worms viz. Eri, Muga, Oak Tassar and Mulberry. While the Oak Tassar is a new introduction in the region, culture of the other three is traditional from time immemorial. Ericulture is not an organized commercial activity as in the case of mulberry. Ericulture is prevalent mainly amongst the indigenous peoplei in hill districts of Assam and northern hill areas of Meghalaya. Lower Brahmaputra Valley is the traditional home of eri spinners and weavers producing bulk of eri yarn and fabric. In the lower Brahmaputra valley itself nearly 9000 women are directly or indirectly associated with eri yarn and cloth production. In Arunachal Pradesh ericulture is practiced in the foothills and plain areas. The eri cocoons are utilized locally. In Meghalaya, ericulture is practiced in Ri-Bhoi and Garo Hills. In Nagaland people in the plain areas practice ericulture. The total annual production of raw silk in the North-East Region is about 877,000 kg. The highest production of raw silk is highest in Assam (527,000 kg) followed by Manipur (187,000 kg) and Meghalaya (131,000 kg). The golden silk, Muga culture is practiced traditionally in the Brahmaputra valley of Assam. Assam alone produces around 85,000 kg of raw muga. In Arunachal Pradesh also muga culture has been newly introduced. Meghalaya is a good source of basic seed cocoons especially from areas bordering Assam. Other states like Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura also have introduced Muga culture. Oak Tassar culture is a new introduction in the states of the region. In all the states a number of Oak Tassar Centres have been established. Assam is the fifth largest producer of mulberry silk in India. Fisheries: Assam has the largest surface water area among the NE states and produces the largest quantity of fishes in the region. In 1990, the land fish production in the NE region was about 90 thousand tones, or over 6 % of the production in the country. The total freshwater resource of the region is estimated at 15,728 km of river and canal; almost 89000 hectares of reservoirs; about 150000 hectares of streams and lakes and almost 85000 hectares of tanks and ponds. But the high demand of the region is not met from the production and large quantity of fish is transported into the region from other states particularly from Andhra Pradesh everyday. Tea: Though Tea was grown in different places of upper Assam earlier, today it is grown in almost all parts of Assam. The Barak Valley in Assam also has its own significant share in this sector. In Tripura there are 55 registered tea estates. Tea has gained growing commercial importance from early part of the 20th century and remarkable expansion of it has taken place. Assam contributed nearly 74% of the total foreign exchange earnings of India in 1966. Assam has 1196 registered tea estates. It is significant that the Guwahati Tea Auction Centre, established in 1970 is the third largest Auction Centre in the world, in terms of total tea sold. In recent times a revolutionary concept of kitchen-garden tea plantation is spreading very fast. This concept is getting popularity and the number of small gardens is about to touch a five-digit figure now. Macro-Economy of North-East Region: The main economy of the North-East region is dependent on agriculture and allied activities. Due to under-development of industry and service sector, there has not been much change in the main occupancy of the region in last decades.

In comparison to the hilly areas the valleys are economically more developed in the region and the Brahmaputra valley being the nerve centre of economic activities. The indigenous people dominate the population composition in four states viz. Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram. There are differences among the seven states in the North-East region with respect to their resource endowments, level of industrialization as well as infrastructural facilities. The industrial sector has mainly grown around tea, timber in Assam and mining, saw mills and plywood factories in other parts of the region. The economy of the region is still primarily agrarian but its full potential is yet to be exploited. Since agriculture and industry has not really taken off in spite of the potential in the form of vast unexploited resource base available in the region, the pressure for employment is on the service sector. The contribution of agriculture to state domestic income is much higher in this region (for details please refer to Table 5). Mining in case of Meghalaya and forestry and logging in case of Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland are important contributors to net state domestic product (NSDP). The contribution of construction is also high in this region. But after the Supreme Courts restrictions on tree felling, the complexity of occupancy underwent changes. Compared to all India average of 20 per cent, manufacturings contribution is between 5 and 8 percent in the region. Employment is mainly in agriculture and the service sector.

Table 5: Contribution of major sectors to NSDP in North-East (at current prices) Sectors Agriculture Year Arunachal Assam Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Tripura 36.63 39.4 36.08 33.27 26.46 23.19 24.13 Q 1.55 1.40 1.20 Q 0.50 0.84 0.82 Q 6.26 5.36 23.85 31.56 NA 3.17 4.30 NA 2.88 0.89 NA 2.30 0.39 NA 15.87 26.26 27.81 29.03 Q 4.76 3.88 3.14 Q 0.54 0.43 0.37 Q NA NA NA 15.85 38.37 35.90 P 35.91 Q 3.87 2.73 P 2.73 Q 3.77 3.77 P 3.77 Q 0.86 0.87 P 0.87 Q 13.77

1990-91 32.98 1995-96 26.55 R 1996-97 27.34P

38.84P 32.52Q 2.58 1.99 2.03 1.46 2.06 1.75 9.72 4.24 3.88 4.54 1.48 2.81 3.06Q 2.33 2.88 2.63 0.0013 0.004

Forestry & Logging

1990-91 11.91 1995-96 7.85 R 1996-97 6.73 P

Fishing

1990-91 0.86 1995-96 0.72 R 1996-97 0.71 P

Mining & quarrying

1990-91 0.69 1995-96 0.30 R 1996-97 0.37 P

0.0006Q 5.21 Q 13.57 13.86

Public

1990-91 9.39

Admn.

1995-96 8.94 R 1996-97 9.63 P

5.64 6.79 8.68 10.51 9.93

13.74

13.35

15.53 NA 10.47 10.75 NA

17.88 16.58 Q 14.53 15.71 17.27 Q

13.86 P 13.84 Q 14.57 18.8 P 18.8 Q

14.35 Q 12.98 Q 11.53 13.04 10.53 11.54

Other Services

1990-91 13.52 1995-96 14.15 R 1996-97 14.15 P

13.82 Q 10.00 Q

Source: North Eastern Development Finance Corporation

Table 6: Percentage contribution of secondary and tertiary sectors to NSDP in NE Sectors Manufacturing Year Arunachal Assam Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Tripura 1990 5.11 -91 1995 3.27(R) -96 1996 3.08(R) -97 Construction 1990 16.22 -91 1995 27.8 R -96 1996 26.87 P -97 Electricity, Gas 1990 -3.13 and Water supply -91 1995 -0.035 -96 1996 0.03 -97 Transport and Communication 1990 0.69 -91 12.46 2.64 3.11 5.78 2.22 2.62

7.53

2.98

3.38

4.84

1.41

2.26(P)

7.70(P) 3.21(Q)

3.30(Q)

N. A.

1.45(Q)

2.26(Q)

4.77

8.49

12.32

14.93

11.52

6.81

6.88

9.64

11.46

12.16

9.54

8.00 P

7.37 P 10.16 Q 12.85

NA

10.36 Q

8.02 Q

0.24

0.03

-1.37

-2.79

-1.58

-3.01

0.33

-2.78

-0.437

-2.32

-0.84

-3.64

0.34

-3.14 Q

-0.192

NA

-0.75 Q

-3.64

2.95

4.03

7.465

5.81

5.48

3.30

1995 0.46 R -96 1996 0.60 P -97 Trade 1990 6.19 -91 1995 5.67 R -96 1996 6.01 P -97 Bank and Insurance 1990 1.22 -91 1995 1.28 R -96 1996 1.33 P -97 Other services 1990 13.52 -91 1995 14.15 R -96 1996 14.15 P -97

3.4

3.11

6.57

3.55

3.48

3.31

3.42 P 2.80 Q

6.73

NA

3.01 Q

3.31

8.43

4.26

11.49

5.39

7.56

7.11

10.36

5.25

16.06

8.32

8.11

5.72

9.79 P 5.20 Q

15.62

NA

7.62 Q

5.72

2.51

1.45 0.96

2.37

1.81

2.25

2.67

3.71

2.59

1.28

1.18

3.32

3.96

0.86 Q

2.67

NA

0.98 Q

3,32

8.68

11.53

10.53

10.47

14.53

14.57

10.51

13.04

11.54

10.75

15.71

18.80

9.93

13.82

10.00

NA

17.27 Q

18.80

Source: North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Vulnerability and Poverty in North-East India Vulnerability: The 99% of the frontiers of the North-East in surrounded by foreign countries. It is linked to the main land of India only through a small strip of land in the north of Bengal, popularly referred as chickens neck. Many states are linked to other part of the country through only one roadway (like Tripura through National Highway 44). Endemic floods, landslides, cloud blasts, avalanches are common features of the regions. The entire region comes under the highest Risk Zone in seismographic classification. Adding to the above factors are poor infrastructure development, ethnic conflicts and ecological degradation. All these factors put the entire region into high volatile vulnerable region. Cosmetic beauty amongst acute poverty: The resource rich states of the North-East generate very little in terms in economic produces, which is reflected in the comparative human poverty index developed by Planning Commission of India (2001). A table of comparison among 32 Indian states in table 8 illustrates the pathetic situation of the states in the North-East. The

10 cosmetic glance at the region gives a misleading picture, as generally people tend to judge poverty from general attitudes and attires etc. Table 8: Comparative Human Poverty Index (1991) in NE States State Combined Rank Rural Poverty Rank Arunachal Pradesh Assam Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Tripura Source: National Human 30 30 27 25 21 20 28 31 14 18 22 21 24 22 Development Report, 2001. Urban Rank 25 23 28 14 11 22 19 Poverty

In general, from the table it could be concluded that all the states perform much below the bigger states of the federal country. There are again much variations prevailing within the states. There are pockets of areas (districts like Dhubri in Assam and Dhalai in Tripura) where acute shortage of food grains in particular season is common feature. There are repeated stories, without much national focus of starvation deaths coming from interior places in the region. Planning Commissions priorities in development of North-East: The Planning Commission set up in 1950, undertook development initiations through Five-Year Plan basis. There are critiques and later on understandings that the clubbing of North Eastern regions planning process along with other regions in a centralised system had some drawbacks. One of the stark examples could be the Million Wells Programme (MWP) initiated from Planning Commission in the 60s and 70s. In majority areas in northeast, it was a failure because of its terrains. In early Five Year Plans infrastructure and gigantic plans were given priorities and the region did not witness much of these happening there. A shift happened during the Eighth Five year Plan whereby emphasis was given on conservation and utilisation of its rich resources. The Planning Commission outlined approaches and strategies for the development of the region. These included among others Intensive efforts at the implementation level to arrest the process of degradation of the hills and to improve the productivity of the land. Financial and physical monitoring of the Hill Area Development Programme by State Governments to improve the implementation of various programmes. Afforestation programme to be popularised through the village panchayats. Appropriate technologies to bring about localised self-sufficiency and generate alternative means of livelihood as opposed to dependence on forest and livestock rearing. Use of appropriate technologies to upgrade the traditional productive systems. Consolidation of small and scattered land holdings in improving the water and land management. Development of horticulture, sericulture and plantation especially the cash crop having low volume, light weight, high value and long shelf-life. Encouragement of number of cottage industries like carpet weaving, handlooms, handicrafts and other village and household based industries. This happened after the recommendations made by Task Force (for The Study of EcoDevelopment in the Himalayan Region) under the chairmanship of noted scholar M. S. Swaminathan. Box 1: Time line of major policy changes on North-East

11

Evolution of development approaches in the North-East: 1971: North-East Council (NEC) was formed for integrated development of North-eastern India mainly consisting eastern Himalayas. 1974: Launching of Hill Area Development Programme (HADP). 1981: Planning Commission set up Task Force for study of Eco-development in the Himalayan region. 1988: Govind Ballabh Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development (GBPIHED) founded at Almora district in Uttar Pradesh as focal point for documentation, dissemination and demonstration for research and development in the whole Himalayan region of India including whole region of North East. 1992: Planning Commission set up Expert Group on National Policy for Integrated Development in The Himalayas. 2001: A new ministry, Department for Development of Northeast Region (DONeR) was formed in the Union for special development of North-East of India. 2002: The Prime Minister at Nainital declares that the Central will set up Himalayan Development Authority for overall development of the Himalayan region including all the states of North East.

Banking and Micro-Finance in North-East India: As of March 2004, the North-East Region had 1871 bank branches with a total deposit base of Rs.23, 666 crores and credit base of Rs.7, 058 crores. The total banking business of the North-East Region is of the order of Rs. 30, 724 crores. Of the 1871 branches, 1607 branches are in rural and semi-urban categories, which form about 86% of the total number of branches. The total business of these rural and semi-urban branches is of the order of Rs.17, 016 crores which forms around 55% of the total business of the region. Of the total available banking infrastructure of the North Eastern Region, Assam has the major chunk constituting around 65% in terms of total number of branches and business profile. The Credit-Deposit ratio has shown a slight improvement in the year 2003-2004 in comparison to the year 2002-2003 which was 26.35% and 29.53% respectively. The national average is 59% as on March 2004. A study carried out by North Eastern Institute of Banking Management (NEIBM), Guwahati revealed that the annual credit usage in the North-East states is around Rs.600 crores as far as micro-credit usage is concerned. One of the most ubiquitous systems of informal credit is the formation of voluntary groups in villages (called funds, committees etc), members of which collect money periodically and give out loans at high rate. The profits are shared. In Manipur, the Marup (Friend) system has almost engulfed the entire state. The advantage of modern micro credit by formal institutions is that there is an external flow of funds into the hands of the groups (SHGs), which can enhance the creditable funds. Among the major players in micro-finance in North-East, RGVN has a micro-finance (mF) programme which is ten years old with the largest loan portfolio. The other few organizations with mF programmes are ASOMI, Guwahati; TDMS, Tezpur; Sipajhar Diamond club, Darrang; Prachesta, Guwahati; YVO; VORHA (Volunteers for Rural Health Agency); World vision; Diocesan Social Service Society of Imphal; Entrepreneurship Associate; etc. But their outreach is very low. In Manipur mF service is very old as mentioned above and the women are very active. SHG Bank Linkage: National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) supported Self help group (SHG)-Bank linkage has achieved miniscule in North-East in comparison to overall national achievement. Against a total linkage of nearly 11 lakhs SHGs in the whole country only 12,278 numbers of SHGs have been linked in North-East till March 2004. And that is too very

12 unevenly distributed in the region. Nearly 90% of the total groups linked are in Assam. In the state like Mizoram and Nagaland linkage is very poor. The following table illustrates the picture of SHG-Bank Linkage scenario in the region:

13

Table 7: Status of SHG-Bank linkage in North-East Cumulati Cumulati ve No of ve No. of New SHGs Cumulati SHGs SHGs Cumulati provided ve No.of provide provided ve No.of Cumulati Cumulati with SHGs d with New with SHGs Cumulati Cumulati ve ve bank refinance bank SHGs bank refinance ve bank Bank ve bank refinanc Refinan refinanc loan as linked as loan refinanc loan as linked as loan as Loan loan as e as on ce e as on on 31 ed on 31 on 31 during on 31 during on 31 during on 31 31 31 March March 2003- during March March March 2003- March March 2003- March 2003 2003 04 2003-04 2004 2004 2003 04 2004 2003 04 2004 3,477 179 104 162 15 108 1,969 7,229 118 35 162 0 0 15 746 63 9 117 22 4,045 2,284 8,201 3,309 10,706 194 850 225 24 225 22 3,372 12,246 5,278 118 35 225 0 0 0 5,656 45.5 123.1 5.79 0.49 0.98 4.23 4.81 1.12 0.58 2 2.31 7.83 3309 0 0 63 0 0 0 3372 1.77 0 28.72 2.22 0.35 3.6 37.63 5278 0.253 3.96 1.12 0.81 118 35 225 0

State Assam Meghala ya Tripura Manipur Nagalan d Arunach al Pradesh Mizora m SubTotal

63

2.49 141.5 7 59.66

34.89 45.543 5656

Source: National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)

14 Resource Based Analysis of the North-East India: The North-East region is living case of people living in poverty within the abundance of resources. The following table illustrates the resource based opportunities and constraints the region is witnessing for years. Table 9: Resource based analysis of North-East Strengths Weaknesses Bio-diversity Bio-diversity The North-East India has highest biological Poor infrastructure facility and marketing diversity network makes it difficult for large scaling up. The cultural diversity provides an example of people mingling and creating a miniature Asia within region. There are ample opportunity of utilising the medicinal plants and herbs in the region. There is possibility of off season vegetable and niche based commercial activities based on the bio-diversity. The is huge market for eco-tourism Forest Forest Peoples role has been reduced in maintaining The forest plays a crucial role in balancing the the forest particularly in forest areas under ecology of the region. direct purview of Government. The forest plays a vital role in animal The traditional scientific method of cultivation husbandry and fodder promotion. in forest has been adversely affected with The forest products play a crucial role in the increasing pressure on forest. economy of the people. Different Government and juridical There are strong traditional systems of interventions in forest areas (like declaration of managing forest still in existence. National Park) often led to forest-people conflicts. Water The favourable rainfall and strong networks of rivers and streams have led to good water feeding particularly in valleys in the North-East. It has helped in development of fisheries too. Many rivers provide waterways for transportation and in many cases it is the only way for transportation. There is ample opportunity to develop irrigation system in the region. Water Due to less carrying capacity of the rivers flood is an annual inevitable in many parts of the region. Water retention in the hilly region is a problem and most of upper catchments areas (including Cherrapunjee, credited with recording highest rainfall in the world) face acute shortage of water. Due to heavy runoff, there is always danger of large soil erosion. Inspite of water availability, irrigation facility is poor. Agriculture The potential of the land in terms of productivity is not totally realised. The poor infrastructure does not allow farmers to go for big commercial ventures. The diversification of agriculture has not happened in large ways.

Agriculture The valleys in the region have most fertile lands with good productivity. The niche crops in the hills have huge economic value. In valleys, even without irrigation facility second crop can easily be taken up. Organic agriculture has lots of opportunity in the region.

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Horticulture The North-East region is rich in horticultural crops and has ample opportunity to go for large scale horticulture promotion. There is large market available for this sector outside the region. Handicrafts The North-East region has abundance of bamboo and handlooms. There are traditional skills available to harness the local resources. The handicrafts products from the region are of high quality and appreciated worldwide. Human Resources The literacy rate in the region much higher than the national average. Education is given high priority by all sections of the society in the region. There are many professionally qualified people available in the region. A work force of retired Army professionals is available. Most of the education system in the region is in English and it provides a cutting edge particularly in Information Technology related work. Women have comparatively more equality in the region and they have comparatively more freedom in engaging in economic activities.

Horticulture Poor infrastructure and lack of processing plants is the biggest hurdle for development of the sector.

Handicrafts The regions landlocked situation and inconducive trade atmosphere constraint the growth of the sector.

Human Resources The unemployment is a big problem in the region. Though overall literacy rate is high, the region has highest dropouts in school level. Number of technical institutions and universities are very few in the region. The formal education system does not take much care of the more relevant issues in the region like relationship of man with forest. Most of the professionals prefer working outside the region. Inspite of women being a major workforce, their role in political decision is almost negligible.

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The category `tribal and its definition would be considered problematical in scholarly circles. Indigenous people in this report refers to tribals under the Article 342 of Indian Constitution, which provides for the president of India by public notification to specify the tribes or tribal communities or parts of or groups within tribes or tribal communities which shall for the purposes of the Constitution be deemed to be Scheduled Tribes. By Indigenous People here it is simply meant a group included in that list hence scheduled tribe (ST). It is because ----just where the line between `tribals and `non-tribals should be drawn has not always been free from doubt. Reference: Bandyopadhyay Jayanta, 1998, Approach to Sustainable Human Development in the Indian Himalaya Concept paper, Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Calcutta, India: IIM, Calcutta. Barik, S.K and V.T.Darlong in Sustainable Management of Forests India; editors A. Arunachalam, M.L. Khan (2000), International Book Distributors, Dehradun.

Barua S (2003); Uprooted in the Northeast The imbalance of rights, ethnic claims and histories of dispossession March issue of Journal of Refugee Studies Directorate of Census. 2001, Provisional Census Data, Government of India: New Delhi. Government of India, 1982. Report of the Task Force for the Study of Eco-Development in the Himalayan Region, New Delhi, India: Planning Commission. Government of India (nd), National policy for Integrated Development in the Himalayas, New Delhi, India: Planning Commission. National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), website (accessed on the 15th of June, 2005). North Eastern Development Finance Corporation (NEDFi), website (Accessed on the 15th of June, 2005).