Mizoram in transition - Gateway House

The surroundings of Lengpui airport in Aizawl, Mizoram, are a reflection of the topography of this North Eastern state. It is set in lush and verdant hills, with dramatic mountains in the background.

Mizoram literally means the land of the Mizo people. With an area of just a little over 21,000 sq km and a population of 12.4 lakhs, Mizoram has a salubrious climate and an abundance of natural resources. Despite being the second state in India to reach 100% literacy, the lack of employment opportunities continues to be a significant handicap to progress. The state government is the primary employer and has more than 45,000 people on its rolls There are no large industries; just about 3,000 small-scale units in agro- and forest-based industries and handicrafts. Agriculture and related sectors employ 60% of the population.

The state has a 2.3% adult HIV prevalence rate, which is 10 times the national average. Changing tribal social support structures, easy access and early initiation to drugs, sexual debut at an early age, and high migration contribute to the state’s HIV epidemic. This is both a domestic issue and an international one for India, because of the state’s porous 722 km-long international. border.

The Mizo are a Tibeto-Burman ethnic group native to Mizoram and neighbouring regions of northeast India, and are related to the Kuki and Chin people. This has made Mizoram a natural refuge for people of similar ethnicities. Over 80,000 Chakmas – a predominantly Buddhist ethnic group from the Chittagong Hill Tracts in Bangladesh – are refugees in the south-western and western parts of Mizoram.

Ever since the coup in Myanmar in 2021, which was followed by a low-grade civil war, thousands of mainly Chin refugees have fled across the border to India, mostly to Mizoram and Manipur. Mizo civil society organizations, local communities, the church, and the state government are providing shelter and sanctuary to over 30,000 Chin refugees, with tacit support from central agencies. It is a strain on Mizoram’s fragile finances, as it has not received its share of taxes and grants from the central government.

Aizawl, the state capital, is about 30 km from Lengpui airport. It represents the afflictions of all Indian hill towns – inappropriate urbanization and unplanned nine-storey buildings stacked side-by-side along narrow roads, teetering on the edges of the hill slopes, cars squeezing past each other with difficulty. In summer, water shortages are common.

Stacked buildings and crowded roads, Aizawl

Nevertheless, the people are cheerful, friendly and smile readily. The state is largely Christian: 87.16% of its population is distributed across various denominations, with Presbyterians and Baptists constituting a majority. Not surprisingly, shops shut on Sunday and all commercial activity ceases. Around 8% of the population is Buddhists, with the majority being Chakma settlers of Arakan origin. There are about 8,000 ethnic Mizo followers of Bnei Menashe, a Judaic group which claims descent from the biblical Menasseh. Hindus, mainly Manipuris, constitute 3.5%, while Muslims make up about 1.1% of the population.

Around nine kilometers from Aizawl at Tanhril, is Mizoram University where the city’s mini-skyscrapers give way to green spaces. The university is generously spread over nearly 1,000 acres, with schools and departments of humanities, languages, social, physical and life sciences, engineering, and medicine. It has earned a niche for academic excellence amongst the institutions in the North East.

The central government has kept the North Eastern states involved in the year-long confabulations under the Indian G20 Presidency, India’s biggest multilateral to date. In March, Aizawl was host to a three-day Business20 meeting[1]. Between June 10-12, 2023, the university hosted a National Seminar on ‘G20 & India.’ The seminar, which took place at the mid-point of India’s presidency, reflected the interest in a broader global understanding of India’s place in the world – and the North East’s own positioning. This exposure is particularly important for the region, which has remained isolated till very recently. The two-day event saw participation by local professors and scholars, academics from Meghalaya, Nagaland, and West Bengal, the media, as well as officers of Assam Rifles. Climate change, biodiversity, and sustainable development goals – domestic and international – were unsurprisingly at the top of the agenda for these states are rich in natural resources and important for India’s food security and connectivity to Southeast Asia.

At 84.53%, Mizoram has the largest forest cover in India. Forest fires are highly frequent, with over 1,300 occurring in 2020 alone. A majority of these were caused by jhum cultivation, which involves clearing a forest area for agriculture by “slash and burn” methods. Fields do not sustain more than two or three crops a year. Farmers then move on to another part of the forest, repeating the destructive process. Since 1988, the state government has sought, with limited success, to check jhum cultivation and promote settled agriculture instead. A positive move was in 2004, when Mizoram legislated for turning its entire agricultural produce organic. Since then, the state has been promoting horticulture in fruits, vegetables, spices, and flowers. Mizoram now exports a variety of flowers including anthurium, roses, and orchids. However, the share of exports is limited, hampered by the lack of adequate transportation infrastructure.

This is exactly where the successful completion of the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project can help. First approved in 2008, it aims to connect Kolkata with Sittwe port in Myanmar by sea, while inland waterway and road links to Mizoram. The project has been held up over the construction of a 109-kilometre road between Paletwa in Myanmar and Zorinpui on Mizoram’s southern border. The new completion date is by the end of 2024 which, if achieved, will help Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura boost income, productivity and output through greater connectivity and linkages between these states, Myanmar, and other countries in Southeast Asia.

Vantawng Fall, the highest waterfall of Mizoram

The state government is also leveraging Mizoram’s natural beauty to attract tourists to the state. It logged over 2 lakh domestic and international tourists in FY2022-23, up from 1.3 lakh arrivals in 2021-22.[2] Paragliding, hiking and visits to caves are gaining in popularity. Thenzawl, 90 km south of Aizawl is host to the Thenzawl Golf Resort. Funded by the Union Ministry of Tourism, it is rated one of the best all-season golf courses in North East India. The 18-hole course has a sharing freeway, automated sprinkler systems, and luxurious eco-log huts of Siberian pine. The Vantawng Fall, Mizoram’s highest and most spectacular waterfall, is also located nearby. Similar investments in sustainable tourism, enhancing connectivity, and by preserving the cultural heritage of its diverse populace, Mizoram has the potential to emerge as an example of progress and growth for India’s North East.