by A. J. PHILIP
THE Northeast was my area of specialization when I joined the Hindustan Times in New Delhi but I had not visited the region. The first opportunity to visit the area came when I won a fellowship of the National Foundation for India (NFI) to study the problems of Chakma refugees settled in Arunachal Pradesh.
I spent a fortnight in the state and realised that despite the periodic protests against the refugees, the local population could not afford to lose them, as they were a source of cheap labour.
Nowadays, protests against the Chakmas are not even heard because there is growing realisation that they are more a blessing than a curse for the state. The NFI’s was a wonderful programme. It facilitated attachment of up to a dozen Northeast journalists a year with newspapers in the rest of the country for a maximum period of 45 days.
It also supported half-a-dozen journalists from other areas to visit the Northeast to study issues of their choice but relevant to the Northeast like the bamboo cultivation.
Since I later became a member of the jury, which selected the applicants, I got opportunities to visit the area several times. Unfortunately, the NFI ended the programme, which really helped bridge the Northeast with the rest of India.
Anyone who has ever visited the region will never miss an opportunity to revisit the place. So when Dibrugarh journalist Ikbal Ahmed invited me for the Fifth International Bodo Festival and Third Sonowal Kachari Cultural Festival at Dibrugarh, I did not think twice before accepting the invitation.
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