Impact of my letter to the Editor

On the morning of 20th December 2018, I was shocked to read the editorial of The Hindu titled "Change in Mizoram" which was about the recent election outcome in the Northeastern state of Mizoram. 

The editorial had a line "The BJP managed to mark its first and only victory in the State by winning the Chakma refugee-dominated Tuichawng seat in south Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district." (italics are mine)

Referring the indigenous Chakma tribe as "refugee" was a shocker for every educated person who is acquainted with Mizoram and one who respects The Hindu as one of the most credible media institutions. Because, Chakmas are Scheduled Tribes in Mizoram and for the protection of their distinct ethnicity, three minority groups were given political autonomy in the form of Autonomous District Council established under Sixth Schedule to the Constitution of India. These three ethnic communities are Chakma, Mara and Lai. Chakma Autonomous District Council (CADC) was established under the Constitution of India in 1972, together with the Mara and Lai.

The "Tuichawng seat" referred to in the editorial comprises of the entire territory of the Chakma Autonomous District Council. How come a tribe who have constitutional status and protection be refugees? So, how can The Hindu err so much? Calling the Chakmas of Mizoram as "refugees" is an assault on their dignity as citizens of India.

As a duty bound citizen, I wrote a letter to the Editor, pointing out the mistake, at the same time lodging the strongest protest and seeking a rectification of the mistake. 

The next day, 21 December, The Hindu made the necessary correction in the editorial and ran a line of regret below it, read as "An earlier version of this article inadvertently used "refugee" to refer to the Chakma tribe. The error is regretted."

The Hindu (original editorial), 20.12.2018

The Hindu editorial after correction, 21.12.2018

The Hindu offers a regret for the mistake

Brief report on Chakma Bizu 2017 celebration with Gandhian institute in Delhi

For the first time the Chakma Buddhist Society (CBS) has organised Bizu Miloni programme in partnership with Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti (GSDS), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Culture, Government of India. The programme was held on 13th April 2017 on the auspicious occasion of Phul Bizu at Satya Graha Mandap in the premises of Gandhi Darshan at Rajghat, New Delhi.

The Bizu is the most important festival of our Chakma Tribal community. Over 350 members of the Chakma Tribal community residing in Delhi and NCR attended the programme.

The programme was graced by eminent social worker Shri Basawaraj Patil, Honb’le Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, as the Chief Guest and Smt Simmi Jain, Councillor of Municipal Corporation of Delhi, as the Guest of Honour. Special Guests of the programme were Dr Gautam Talukdar, Chief Controller of Accounts, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Government of India, Shri SA Jamal, Administrative Office, GSDS, Shri Ramesh Shiledar, Former Northeast Incharge (RSS), Shri Pramod Petkar, Pramukh, Vanavashi Kalyan Ashram, Delhi and Shri Suhas Chakma, Director, Asian Centre for Human Rights. The Convenor of the Programme was Shri Lal Mohan Chakma, General Secretary, Chakma Buddhist Society and Shri Rajdeep Pathak, Programme Officer, GSDS was the Mentor of the Programme.

The programme started with the lighting of lamps by the Chief Guest, dignitaries and special guests and followed by prayers of Buddhist principles of Panchasheela for peace and harmony by Buddhist Monks. Then, the dignitaries were honoured with Chakma “haadi” and the GSDS also presented miniature “Gandhian Charka” to the chief guest and other special guests.

Shri Paritosh Chakma, Co-Convenor of Bizu Organising Committee welcomed all the dignitaries, guests and members of the Chakma community and shared warm greetings on the occasion of Phul Bizu and best wishes for the new year. He also briefly explained what is Bizu.

Shri SA Jamal, Administrative Officer, GSDS also welcomed all the guests on behalf of Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti on the occasion of the Chakma Bizu Festival and presented with the audience a short presentation on Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samity the message of peace and harmony.

This was followed by a refreshing and colourful traditional dance by representatives of Chakma residents from NOIDA which set the festive mood of the audience.

Chief Guest, Shri Basawaraj Patil enlightened the audience with his speech and shared the message of unity and harmony among the communities across the country. He appealed to the audience that the spirit of peace, togetherness and harmony during the Bizu Festival should not be limited just during the festival time but the same spirit of joy and harmony should be celebrated and extended throughout the rest of the year.

Hon'ble Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha Mr Baswaraj Patil ji speaking at the progrmame 

School children of Class V from Sewa Bharati Sewa Dham from Mandoli performed a beautiful dance displaying the spirit of happiness and joy and dancing to the music of Bizu.

Guest of Honour Smt Simmi Jain in her speech shared her pleasant experience of working with the Chakma community in Delhi. She emphatically observed that Chakma’s festivals are getting better and better each year.

This was followed by a lively Bizu dance was performed by Miss Genia Chakma from Gurgaon to cheer the audience.

Shri Suhas Chakma in his speech highlighted the connection of Chakmas with Gandhian philosophy of non violence in their struggle for fundamental rights including citizenship. He said Chakmas are among the few community in the North East which have practiced the Gandhian method of struggle for rights.

In the end, a colourful traditional fashion show led by Miss Rabina Chakma showcased the beautiful traditional attires of the Chakma community which blended at ease with modernity.

The programme was concluded with vote of thanks by Shri Suhas Chakma on behalf of the Chakma community and Shri Rajdeep Pathak on behalf of the GSDS.

Mizoram Hindi teachers begin another round of fight for their rights

By Paritosh Chakma

Hundreds of Hindi teachers recruited under the Central Sponsored Scheme (CSS) in Mizoram have once again gathered at a place in the heart of Aizawl and launched another round of indefinite hunger strike from the midnight of 22 March 2017 demanding regularization of their jobs. A total of 1305 CSS Hindi teachers have not been paid their salaries for the last 10 months i.e. upto February 2017 when their employment contracts expired.

Their organization, Mizoram CSS Hindi Teachers Association (MCHTA), has claimed that at least 17 Hindi  teachers have died in the last several months due to their inability to afford treatment due to non-payment of salaries. The MCHTA has put up a list of 15 of their deceased colleagues on the wall of the CM's Bungalow.

At the time of writing this report, a total of 107 Hindi teachers are being attended by doctors after their health deteriorated for not taking food. At least six teachers have been hospitalized and a pregnant lady has reportedly suffered miscarriage during the protest fasting.

The Hindi teachers are resolute to carry on their indefinite hunger strike. It is pity to see the visuals of their sufferings and certainly Mizoram government and Govt of India should look into their demands and fulfill them without lose of time. 

Background:

For those new to this issue, a background report is available here: http://paritosh-chakma.blogspot.in/2017/02/government-of-india-listen-to-heartbeat.html

Court of Inquiry demanded into unnatural death of Assam Rifles jawan, Kamal Mitra Chakma from Mizoram

Probe plea into death of jawan, The Telegraph, Kolkata, 19^th March 2017

https://www.telegraphindia.com/1170319/jsp/northeast/story_141420.jsp#.WM5-kTt96M8

A Staff Reporter

Guwahati, March 18: The All India Chakma Social Forum, an organisation working for rights of Chakmas, today urged the Union home ministry to conduct an impartial inquiry into the "custodial killing" of Kamal Mitra Chakma, a rifleman of 36 Assam Rifles posted at Jalaki in Nagaland.

In a statement today, Victor Talukdar, deputy secretary-general of the forum, alleged that Chakma was brutally assaulted at his battalion headquarters in Jalaki when he went to submit his leave application to go home to Mizoram on March 10. He was thrown outside the premises assuming that he was dead. Some people spotted him and handed him over to the Assam Rifles authorities who admitted him to Jorhat military hospital in Assam in a serious condition. He died today.

"Assam Rifles officials claimed that Chakma was injured after he fell from a building. But he did not have any head injuries but had broken bones in his leg, hand and thigh. He was lying unconscious outside the 36 Assam Rifles battalion headquarters which prove that his injuries were not due to a fall. His parents told us that Chakma told them that he was beaten up by his colleagues," Talukdar claimed.

Assam Rifles officials could not be contacted for comment.

The forum demanded the post-mortem be conducted at a government hospital to ensure impartiality in the investigation and a court of inquiry be instituted by officials outside the Assam Rifles battalions in Nagaland.

x x x           xxx      xxx          xxx   

Also, read in "Chakma forum seeks inquiry into AR rifleman's death", The Times of India, Guwahati Edition, 19th March 2017 

Government of India: Listen to the heartbeats of 1305 Hindi teachers of Mizoram

By Paritosh Chakma

It is painful to see how Hindi teachers recruited under Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) have been forced to go on “indefinite hunger strike” in the heart of Aizawl, capital city of Mizoram demanding immediate release of their pending 10 months' salaries and regularization of their jobs which have effectively expired today (28^th February 2017). A total of 1305 Hindi CSS teachers recruited under “Scheme of Financial Assistance for Appointment and Training of Hindi Teachers in Non-Hindi Speaking States/UTs”, under which Central government pays the salaries, are uncertain about their future. Their jobs are hanging in balance because the scheme’s guidelines state that after the Plan year (currently, 12^th Five Year Plan, 2012-17) the responsibility of maintenance of these Hindi teachers “shall rest upon the concerned State Governments/UT Administrations. They will be required to discharge this responsibility out of their own resources in their budget.”

Mizoram Hindi teachers staging indefinite hunger strike at Aizawl

While the State government of Mizoram has been so far non-committal to regularize their services, the Central government has not released salaries to them for ten months now! To make the matter worst, the Central government apparently has appointed recently a private institution Awadh Research Foundation based in Lucknow to evaluate the need of the scheme in Mizoram and any further decision will be based on the recommendations of this research institute.

Since 22 February, the Mizoram Hindi Teachers Association members have been forced to resort to “Pen Down Strike”, which included boycott of classes and annual exam, and took to the streets of Aizawl demanding just decisions from the governments, i.e. to regularize/extend their services, and payment of their salaries. Left with no other option, they launched indefinite hunger strike in front of the Chief Minister’s office cum residence from yesterday.

It is unclear as to why the Ministry of Human Resources Development has not released their salaries, as no official statement in this regard has been issued by the Ministry. It is also not clear as to why the evaluation of the scheme was not done much earlier, say in 2016, which could have avoided the situation of uncertainty and chaos as we are seeing today.

However, the answer may be found in the fact that it is not the CSS Hindi teachers alone who have not been paid for months. Almost 2,200 Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) teachers (which is also a Centrally Sponsored Scheme) across Mizoram have not been paid their monthly salaries since August 2016, as per a report by The Frontier Despatch, a local English weekly, dated 19^th January 2017. These teachers who are able-bodied men and women employed by the Government are forced to rely on parents and relatives even for pocket money, not to mention for basic necessities and, in some cases,  for their ill children’s medicines. (Read, What it’s like to be an SSA teacher, The Frontier Despatch, 19 January 2017 )

It painfully appears that the government - both Centre and State - has been neglecting our teachers, which is not a healthy sign in our society.

Hindi teachers protesting in Aizawl

Hindi teachers protesting in Aizawl

Hindi teachers protesting in Aizawl

Hindi teachers protesting in Aizawl

Hindi teachers protesting in Aizawl

There is no doubt that the teaching of Hindi in the schools and colleges is extremely important for a North Eastern state like Mizoram where Hindi is little understood by the people. Hindi can ensure better communications between ethnic communities, ensure social progress, national integration and boost tourism in the state. Hindi can be a tool for empowerment to the population of the state by eradicating feeling of alienation from the mainstream, which is strong among the people of Mizoram, and help the ethnic communities linguistically when they are living outside the state (particularly North India, Hindi belt) for education, jobs and businesses etc and within the state.

Therefore, the Central government must continue the “Scheme of Financial Assistance for Appointment and Training of Hindi Teachers in Non-Hindi Speaking States/UTs” in Mizoram and extend the employment of these 1305 Hindi teachers without lose of time.

And, the healing process should start immediately by paying their salaries due for 10 months. The government of India, if truly a people's government, must listen to the heartbeats of these 1305 Hindi teachers of Mizoram.

Take Action: Build a bridge on Karnafuli river (Demagiri, Mizoram)

Demagiri, or Tlabung, in Western Mizoram near to the India-Bangladesh border, is a British era village (now a sub town). The British had set up their foremost frontier post here during the Lushai Expedition in 1871-72 and finally annexed the Lushai hills in 1890s. Demagiri was the gateway of British conquest of Lushai hills (present day Mizoram) and Lt Col TH Lewin had set up his headquarters here. The British came to conquer Lushai hills through the Karnafuli river, also known to Chakmas as Borgang, over which the mighty Kaptai Dam was built by the East Pakistan government in 1960s.  

Tragically, as of date there is no bridge over the Karnafuli river. The river which has swollen due to the Kaptai Dam waters, divides Indian villages and as many as 17 Indian villages, predominantly inhabited by Chakma tribal people, are on the other side of the river (bordering Bangladesh). An estimate stated that around 7,000 people live on the other side of the Karnafuli river. 

The villages which are situated on the other side of the Karnafuli river are (1) Nunsury I, (2) Nunsury II, (3) Bindiasora, (4) Tablabagh I, (5) Tablabagh II, (6) Tablabagh III, (7) Kalapani, (8) Lokkisury, (9) Malsury, (10) Devasora, (11) Puankhai, (12) Nakruksora, (13) Bandiasora, (14) New Balukiasuri, (15) Saichen, (16) Hmundo and (17) Mauzam.

Due to lack of a bridge over the Karnafuli river which according to me is one of the biggest rivers of Mizoram, flowing into Bangladesh, these border people are facing untold sufferings and remained disconnected with the rest of India.

Every day, dozens of tribal school children from the other side of the river put their lives at risk while crossing the fearful river of Karnafuli by small boats to come to schools at Demagiri (Tlabung) which is on the opposite side of the river (Indian side). (See the photograph of school children dangerously crossing the Karnafuli river by small boat at the risk of their lives while going to school.)

The only civil hospital is also situated at Demagiri which is inaccessible to the border people living on the other side of the river. In the absence of a bridge over the Karnafuli river, the villagers are forced to take motor boats which are quite expensive for the impoverished villagers. Lack of ability to pay the ferry charges directly result in denial of access to markets, banking and post office, schools, and communication facilities etc.

If a bridge is constructed over the Karnafuli river, the border inhabitants of these villages shall be uplifted not only economically in terms of access to markets and business but also in terms of access to education, health services, and other social welfare facilities. 


Above all, a bridge over the Karnafuli river will restore freedom of movement of these Indian citizens within their country from which they have been tragically deprived in independent India.

Therefore, the Government of India/Government of Mizoram should take urgent measures to build a bridge over the Karnafuli river at Demagiri.
  

AICSU performs at North East students festival in Delhi

On 22 October, 2016, the cultural troupe of the All India Chakma Students Union (AICSU) performed at the NESt Fest (North East Students Festival) programme organized by My Home India at 8, Ashoka Road, New Delhi.

Dance Video:

The full HD video of the Chakma dance is available at AICSU's official Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C9JYYm_1dk&feature=youtu.be