Women in Assam are a class apart in India. They enjoy a better status than their counterparts across the country.

WOMEN in Assam are a class apart in India, says a latest survey. They enjoy a better status than their counterparts across the country, the North East Network has concluded.

NEN has just compiled a directory on support services to counter violence against women in Assam. It was a project undertaken in collaboration wit the UNIFEM. One finding that doesn’t come as a surprise is greater gender equality in Assam. The society doesn’t suffer from practices like dowry, child-marriage and bride-burning. This could be due to the fact that the Assamese society evolved partially from a tribal background and has thus retained some of the original value system of equity. NEN Directory is compiled from mostly from primary and secondary sources of information on the condition of support services in the States’ 23 districts. The low intensity war like situation owing to insurgency and counter-insurgency operations spurred the study. Because in the prevailing atmosphere, women are often at the receiving end The Directory notes violence against women in armed conflict situations is different from violence against women in normal times. For, the State, which is supposed to be the guardian of protecting the lives of the citizens, is very often the reason for their death.  Sexual and physical abuses are often so violent that they result in death. In ethnic clashes again, women and children are easy victims and are the first ones to be killed, the Directory observes. The effects of violence on women have different dimensions. The psychological trauma associated with sexual violation and with the loss or disappearance of family members lasts long even after the return of peace.

Aftermath of the conflict has resulted in an increase in female-headed households, the Directory notes. It has contributed to large-scale migration to the urban centres by women. This is most pronounced in the Bodo dominated areas. Quoting the All Bodo Women’s Welfare Federation, the Directory says an estimated 800 Bodo weavers, are ‘working under bondage’ in the Sualkuchi and in the neighbouring West Bengal.  However, there is no record whatsoever, of the numbers of the Bodo women working as domestic help in different urban centres, it adds. About witch hunting, NEN Directory has this to say: control over resources, personal enmity with powerful members of the community and the prevalence of superstition are responsible for witch hunting. Further research is required to determine whether there is any link between witch hunting and the armed conflict situation in Goalpara, Bongaigaon, Kokrajhar, Nalbari and Dhubri districts. Literacy among Assamese women is considerably high at 43 per cent. An estimated 23.8 per cent had education up to primary level, 30.6 per cent up to middle level, 28 per cent up to matric, and 15.2 per cent up to graduation.  The latest Census shows almost 2.4 per cent of Assamese women are graduates. Against gender gap of 23 per cent in matters of literacy in the country, Assam has a gap of 16 per cent gender gap. While 50.9 per cent female workers are engaged in cultivation in the State, they have only 12  per cent  representation in agricultural labour and 23.5 in livestock, forestry and related sectors. The State has only a nominal representation of 72 women, against 1,000 men in rural activities, NEN Directory shows. Though women have been playing a major role in the society, since the 1921 freedom movement, their role in decision- making is nominal. None of the traditional institutions of governance accept women as an integral part.

In the State Assembly as also at the grassroots level, the participation of women is extremely low. One obvious NEN directory conclusion is: to achieve equality at all levels, a change in the basic power structure is called for. There is a need to ensure the participation of women in political processes. In the area of health, provision of basic health facilities, especially in the interior areas, participation of women is required, while there is also a need for better health care support services, especially on mental health in conflict prone areas, it observes.

Shanti eyes

 North-East Green Oscar winner Shanti Pada Gon Chaudhuri informs about several ambitious projects in the North-East. 

AFTER turning darkness into light for the people of the Sunderban area, Green Oscar winner Shanti Pada Gon Chaudhuri, now eyeing the North-East for with his innovations with renewable energy sources. Gon Chaudhuri who gave a fresh lease of life to the Sunderban islanders with the non conventional form of energy that fetched him the “Green Oscar” from the Ashden Trust, UK said, several ambitious projects in the four North-Eastern states, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Tripura are in the pipeline.

The expert who was in Agartala recently speaking to this reporter said that in the Kalain block in Barak valley district of Assam, three villages will be covered fully electrified by means of solar technology before the forthcoming Durga puja at an estimated cost of Rs one crore. “About 600 families will be fully benefited under the project”, he informed.

At the same time, in Tura, the headquarters of the West Garo hills district, the expert on non conventional energy resources will impart technical know how to the Meghalaya Government for electrification in 50 remote villages besides setting up an Energy

Park in Shillong at a cost of Rs 1.22 crore.

“Efforts are on for setting up an Energy Park at Suryamani Nagar near Agartala and Itanagar, the capital of Arunachal Pradesh, he said adding, in his home State Tripura, about 10,000 houses in three villages will be provided with power derived from solar energy in West Tripura district.

”However, electrification in the NE states would not be like that of Sunderbans as in case of Sunderbans, there is no immediate scope of electrification through transmission lines”, he felt.

On his upcoming projects, he said, the 3.6 mega watt Durga Dwani Tidal power project would be the first one in India besides the “Journey to Sun” under artificial simulation in the Energy park Kolkata. Apart from this we are also working on solar power generation in cold deserts like Ladakh and power generation through windmills in Madhya Pradesh, he informed.

He also expressed the hope that the mini hydel power potential in Arunachal Pradesh, if tapped properly may supply 2000 mega watt power, almost half the total demands in the entire North-East and will hold talks with Arunachal Pradesh Government. It may be recalled here that the NB Institute of Rural Technology, Sekerkote, an NGO working for vocational training with both surrendered militants and unemployed youths was S P Gon Chaudhuri’s brainchild. He was also instrumental in setting up of the one-mega watt Biomass Gasifier Project at Khetricherra, Chawmanu.

His endeavour for rural electrification in and around the islands in Sunderbans has benefited 36,000 families and helped the West Bengal Government earned revenue of more than one crore annually.

What is most interesting is that due to rural electrification, snake bite deaths in Sunderbans has gone down drastically as the villages now can store anti-venoms in refrigerators.

Pull, push factors

WHAT is the pull or push factor that makes hundreds of students from the northeast knock at Delhi and other universities for admission. Says Pradip Bhattacharyya, vice-chancellor, Tezpur University: “I understand if a student wants to get admission into St. Stephen’s (in Delhi) or Xavier’s (in Mumbai and Kolkata), but why are they flocking even to mediocre colleges”.

“Today it’s glamorous to send children to study outside. Even toddlers are made to stand in the queue,” he said with a smile. He just doesn’t believe lack of infrastructure is a cause for student migration. The distinguished academician points out the NE region has 13 universities, a regional engineering college and an IIT. Assam itself has two medical colleges and two engineering colleges. Bhattacharyya notes: “All of our universities here in this region have adequate facilities. Our labs are well equipped. But, yes, we have not been able to provide the best experts and faculties. For that don’t blame the Universities. Blame the environment.. It is not congenial.” He remarks North-East is home to many outlawed militant organizations like the NSCN and ULFA. Although the Government has started talks with the NSCN, others are yet to respond to the offer of talks.

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