Self-powered

The debate still rages about the political benefits that accrue from development. In election after state election, psephologists undertake audits to see if there is a correlation between popular appreciation and development work. In this endeavour, the pessimists inevitably fail to appreciate the consequences of poor economic activity. It can be safely said that every insurgency, every movement for separatism draws on a perception that the government 8212; at the Centre or in particular states 8212; has allowed pockets to remain untouched by growth and opportunities. As a sign of good news in this context, the Bodo story is a work is progress. And by the latest initiatives taken in the region, it holds valuable insights for the rest of India.

In 2003, the Bodo Liberation Tigers Force, till then fighting for their 8220;state within a state8221;, entered into a memorandum of understanding with the government and many of its members became part of the Bodoland Territorial Council. Within its jurisdiction is about a third of Assam8217;s total territory. The benefits are slowly showing. Last month, after receipt of competitive bids, a Hyderabad company was chosen to install a hydropower project in Kokrajhar district. This is the first public-private partnership in the Bodoland region, and it holds the possibility of a rash of more such projects being conceptualised and operationalised. It also shows what happens when people with a sense of alienation are brought into the decisionmaking and administrative processes. Of course, this gives them a stake in the system. But more important, as this instance shows, it brings economic growth and opportunity to the region.

These are restive times again for Assam as a whole, with a spurt in violence and an agitation for Scheduled Tribe status by tea garden workers heating up. The Centre and state governments need to heed the good news from Kokrajhar and consider ways of bringing more people out of a feeling of alienation.