The departure of the train that left Sairang, a town on the outskirts of Aizawl (Mizoram’s capital), on Saturday morning to arrive in Delhi’s Anand Vihar station on Monday, marks a milestone moment. Railway connectivity between Delhi and Aizawl is significant in many ways. One, it connects one of India’s farthest state capitals with the national rail grid. Until recently, the railways did not service much of India’s North-East. In the past decade, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura and Mizoram have seen
The departure of the train that left Sairang, a town on the outskirts of Aizawl (Mizoram’s capital), on Saturday morning to arrive in Delhi’s Anand Vihar station on Monday, marks a milestone moment. Railway connectivity between Delhi and Aizawl is significant in many ways. One, it connects one of India’s farthest state capitals with the national rail grid. Until recently, the railways did not service much of India’s North-East. In the past decade, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura and Mizoram have seen trains chugging in, connecting their respective state capitals with the national capital. Two, a railway link eases trade. In the case of the train to Aizawl, the track is eventually expected to stretch all the way to the Sittwe port in Myanmar, opening up a new alternative route to the North-East. This project, now hobbled by the civil war in Myanmar, has strategic implications and holds great potential for travel and trade. Third, easing the entry of people and goods from the rest of India will have ramifications in a society protective of its identity.
A nuanced language of politics and development is needed to engage with the openings and concerns that arrive with trains. The North-East is particularly concerned about migration, as evident in the political mobilisations in the region. Provisions such as the Inner Line Permit (applicable in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram) are remnants of a protective vision that built guardrails against land alienation and cultural loss. These fears will have to be assuaged so that local communities and markets plug into the national economy. However, constant reiteration of migration as infiltration can entrench an insular vision that fosters fear of the “outsider”, not necessarily from another country but even from neighbouring states, and stalls economic integration.
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