As we get ready to welcome 2003 with open arms, it is but natural to make a quick retrospect of the year we are bidding good-bye. And it was a pleasant 2002 by all accounts for us the North-Easterners. Nagaland is looking to tomorrow with hope. The ongoing ceasefire has paved the way for Muivah-Swu visit to Delhi. Their first round will not yield substantial dialogue. It marks a new beginning in the region.

Now that a new generation leadership is at the helm of affairs in all the state capitals, it should be possible to display the Zoramthanga spirit of good neighbourliness. Some give and take, a concession here and there. After all, all the states were together at one time. Their destines are linked together. If a village is here in this state or that state makes no difference to the lives of the people so long as their material needs are met, as long there is a responsive bureaucracy and as long as there is an accessible political executive. The past few months have for the first time shown a willingness to work together in the region for the collective good, not for name calling, not for scoring debating points. This augurs well for the future. The Bodo problem is almost solved. Violence has come down considerably. Peace paves the way for development. And the Centre has promised to pump prime the economy of the region like never before. For the first time since Independence, Delhi has a ministry as the exclusive interface between the Centre and the North-East. A sort of single window it is and it fulfils a long felt need.

Sport stars are shining beautifully over the North-East. Through out the year, the North-East remained in the forefront of medals tally in one event or the other. Saraswati Saha won gold at Busan Asiad. Amongst the North-Easterners, it is the Manipuris, who are in the first line. They made India proud at the Commonwealth Games. And brought delight to the home crowd by being the first NE state to lift the prestigious Santosh Trophy for football. Boys from the Holy Heart School, Mizoram have brought home the Subroto cup for sub-junior football. At the Hyderabad National Games, NE did well in all events they took part. No surprise therefore, Assam will host the next National Games in 2005. These are no mean feat for a region known to rest of India as the hot bed of ethnic rivalries and insurgencies of one kind or the other. As the moneypour, where development funds end up in the retaining walls and in lining the pocket of contractors and insurgents. And as the land, where killing, kidnapping, and Kalashnikov are a thriving enterprise.

2002 marks the first stage in wriggling out of the anthropological specimen stage and proudly march to the beat of the gong. The change has come because of people and their craving for a better tomorrow where head is held high. Nagaland holds the mirror to this change. All in all, 2002 was a good year for the North-East. 2003 should mark a new milestone. This is not the pious wish of an eternal optimist; but a pragmatists’ prognosis.

| Headlines | From Other Publications | Travel Column |
| News Briefs   | National |
| NEE Main Page  | Nena  Home Page |