Bumpy ride for North-East

While in 2015 most of the media limelight was on Assam, rest of the North-East also had a very eventful year, many a time making it to national headlines.

In Nagaland, a horrific incident happened on February 5 when a mob of 5,000 stormed the Dimapur Central Jail, dragged out a 35-year-old alleged Bangladeshi accused of raping a Naga woman, dragged him for over seven kilometres, and lynched him to death. This incident shocked the entire nation.

Then in August at New Delhi, the Centre and the NSCN (IM) signed the framework agreement for the 18 years old peace process. Although there are several differences among different Naga groups over the agreement.

The year was very eventful for trouble-torn Manipur. Militants killed 18 Indian Army troopers in Chandel district in June. Responding to that, the Army conducted surgical strikes along the Myanmar border.

Irom Sharmila Chanu , completed 15 years of hunger strike on November 1, with no hopes of her demand being met of repeal of the AFSPA.

The state also witnessed massive protests in favour of inner line permit system in Imphal valley. The state government was forced to pass the bill after of the agitator , a school student Sapam Robinhood died in police action.

The passage of the ILP and two other bills of land reforms caused huge resentment in the hill areas of the state. They burnt down the houses of MLAs and MPs . Nine people were killed in police action in Churachandpur.

Amid the tumult, the India-Myanmar-Thailand (IMT) trilateral highway became operational. And the Imphal-Mandalay bus service was flagged off on December 10.

In Meghalaya, the biggest incident was the death of former president A P J Abdul Kalam. He died of cardiac failure while delivering a lecture at IIM Shillong on July 27.

In Tripura, the only communist ruled state in the country the biggest news was when the Manik Sarkar led state government became the first state in Northeast India to repeal AFSPA from the state.

Agartala, Tripura’s capital city, became the third international Internet gateway in country after Mumbai and Chennai for Internet connectivity.

In Mizoram, frequent change of governors dominated the political scenario in Mizoram in 2015 which also saw lifting of an 18-year-old ban on liquor in the state.

In the frontier state of Arunchal Pradesh, the year began with the first ever train link. The state saw a swine flu red alert, a chopper crash but what topped is the recent political crisis which is now being fought in the court rooms.

21 of the Congress MLAs in the Congress ruled state are against the Chief Minister Nabam Tuki and with the help of 11 BJP and 2 independent MLAs they almost toppled the Tuki government until the Gauhati High Court intervened. The matter now looks to be resolved in 2016.