This is an essay i wrote in 2007 for the Civil Aviation Ministry. I won the prize for the best essay. I am sharing it now for everyone to read.
Role of Civil Aviation in Development of North
Eastern Region
North
Eastern India is the easternmost region of India
consisting of the contiguous Seven
Sister States
and the state of Sikkim.
This region is a misshapen strip of land, linked to the rest of the country by
a narrow corridor just 20 kms wide at its slimmest, which is referred to as the
“Siliguri Corridor” or "Chicken's Neck". Owing to its geographical
isolation from the rest of India
and the relative primitiveness of the tribal societies existing here, the
region has remained virtually cut off from the rest of India. From
time immemorial till the near eclipse of the British Raj, and even to this day,
this situation of isolation has continued in one form or the other.
Given the topography and inaccessibility of
the region, the civil aviation industry can play a major role in integrating
this region with the mainland and bring in a sense of belonging to the nation
as a whole. The resulting connectivity would alleviate the fear in the minds of
the people of the north east that they are left to fend for themselves and that
their problems is seen by Delhi
as national issue in a broader sense rather than a local issue.
Apart
from this, the biodiversity, a vibrant culture and a sense of aura attached to
the north east can promise immense opportunity to the economic development of
this region by connecting it to mainstream India.
The aviation sector till recently has been
playing a passive role, dominated by the national airlines and the armed forces
for maintaining basic connectivity, essential supplies and relief during the
times of crises or emergencies. It was never seen as a commercially viable
entity. Things are improving slowly with liberalization and the entry of
private players.
The three major areas of national and local
significance in which the influence of the civil aviation industry can have a
major impact are as follows:
- Tourism & Culture
- Higher Education
- Trade and Commerce
Tourism
& Culture:
The North East with its geographical and ecological
diversity is a place of magical beauty. North-East India
is exceptional in many ways. Unlike other tourist destinations of the country
the North East presents conditions to attract tourists throughout the year. The
region has a temperate climate and is comparatively cooler than the mainland India and can
be projected as the complete destination for visitors during the summer months.
Winters too are not that severe in most parts of the region. The pollution-free
environment is an attraction which the North East has in abundance. Its verdant
forests, exquisite flora, turbulent streams, lofty mountains and majestic snow
clad peaks make it a unique place offering the tourist numerous opportunities
for rafting, water skiing, Para-sailing, hiking, mountaineering and jungle
camping.
Each region has its own unique natural
attraction, The Himalayan range of Arunachal Pradesh with its snowcapped
mountains, the worlds' highest rainfall at Sohra (Cherrapunjee) Meghalaya, the
one-horned rhino at Kaziranga and Manas, the phenomenon of birds committing
suicide in the Jatinga hills are some of the diverse attractions for nature
lovers. The North East especially Meghalaya offers thrilling experiences for
those interested in cave tourism. Temples
are a major attraction of this region like the Buddhist temple of Tawang
and the Kamakhya Temple of Hindus etc. At Guwahati, Majuli island at Brahmaputra the biggest River Island
of the world is a rare attraction. There are well preserved Churches all over
N.E. States. If one is looking for a quiet getaway from the hustle and bustle
of city life, one can go to the lush green tea gardens and play golf at one of
the numerous golf courses which have air strips attached to them.
One can also shop for exquisite textiles, tribal shawls
which are available in a variety of colours and designs, cane and bamboo
artifacts, and other unusual souvenirs.
The ethnic and the cultural diversity of
the people, Raj nostalgia associated with the tea industry, different battle
sites of World War-II and the various war cemeteries are some of the other
attractions that the region has to offer.
The air link to this region can help
immensely in the development of the tourism industry. This would increase the
influx of tourists not only from India but also from across the
world. Promotion of tourism will have a
development impact over social and economic status of the region. The regional
economy would be benefited as tourism encourages allied industries like hospitality,
travel, handicrafts etc. Organizing cultural events like the Kanchunjunga
Festival, Festival of Tea Tribes at Golaghat would encourage the interaction
between the tourists and the locals and promote the culture of the north
eastern region. Such events can be organized or sponsored by the operating
airlines in the yearly tourism calendar and trips to these events can be
offered as a package to the tourists visiting this area.
Marketing Tourism:
- Various airlines can bring out promotional brochures and videos
highlighting the tourist hotspots and the itinerary of cultural events in
region thereby creating awareness about this region.
- Helicopter tourism can
also be promoted in a big way by introducing small, say 20-seater
helicopters. Such trips would encourage people to visit unseen places and
enjoy their beauty. The administration can take cues from the
success of Himachal Pradesh in development of tourism through the civil
aviation where similar terrain conditions as in the north east have worked to
the advantage of the aviation industry. There are three airports in the State
at Shimla, Kullu and Kangra two of which have been upgraded to handle Boeing
737 and ATR . Tourism in turn has become a major contributor to the revenue of
the state. During the year 2004, the tourist arrivals in the state were 6.5
million which is roughly equivalent to the population of the State. Tourism
contributes nearly 8% of the State Domestic Product.
Worldwide tourism contributes about 11% of
the total workforce and 10.2% of the global gross domestic product. The dynamic
growth of this industry is evident from the fact a new job is added to the
sector every 2.5 second. The changing geography of tourism
since the 9/11 attacks has brought home the importance of regional and domestic
tourism. By 2020 the Asia Pacific region is projected to become the second
largest tourist generating market in the world. To open up to that market could
be very rewarding for Northeast India.
Higher
Education:
The
north east offers a very pristine and appropriate environment for educational
activities to thrive. Better connectivity through air travel would facilitate
movement of teaching talent to these far flung places leading to the
improvement of higher education in the north east. The establishment of an IIT
in Guwahati and proposal of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to establish an IIM
in Shillong are steps in the right direction. Medical education can also be
encouraged by establishing Medical colleges cum hospitals which can
considerably decrease the cost of medical expenses and improve the quality of
life in this region. Development of higher education in the northeast would
have far fetching advantages for the talent starved industries of commerce in India because
it would open one more region having ready to use intellectual capital. The
best examples of such establishments would be the IT and the ITES Industry
which is creating an astonishing number of jobs every year. It would also have
a symbiotic effect because where there is availability of intellectual talent
commercial and corporate power houses would be encouraged to set up shop
leading to overall economic development and generation of meaningful employment
to the local population. With the spread of education, the awareness about India will rise
and the higher education scenario can only hasten this process.
Trade
and Commerce:
Major state capital cities like Aziwal,
Imphal and agartala can be promoted as international airports and hubs of
commercial activities. Only recently Guwahati has been reopened as an
international hub though the number of international flights operating in this
region is limited. These activities would increase the volume of passenger
traffic coming directly to the north eastern India there by considerably
increasing the domestic and international tourist footfalls into the region. It
would also reduce the travel time and money spent by any individual who would
want to travel out the country from this region.
Wealth generation in a region is boosted to
a great extent through the creation, activation and development of the overall
infrastructure. The infrastructure includes roads, airports, drinking water
facilities, community waste disposal facilities, power stations and other
public works services. Business establishments like L & T will get encouraged
to go into an MOU with the regional governments to develop the living
conditions of the region. Given a period of time and resources it will ensure
progress.
As most of the region is situated in harsh
geographical regions, the transportation or movement of agricultural products
and other goods in and out of the region becomes a very difficult and time
taking preposition. The cargo sector of the civil aviation industry should be
promoted in a big way so that there is a fast and efficient method of moving
goods in the region. Exclusive cargo terminals can be established in the
airports and the airports must be appropriately redesigned to handle the cargo
aircrafts. The promotion of the cargo sector would also increase the volume of
formal trade between the north east and the rest of South
East Asia. With better connectivity we can visualize Northeast India supplying hydroelectric power to its
cross-border neighbors, pipelines moving gas and petroleum products across the
transnational region with lower transportation costs. It will make North east India an
attractive investment destination.
The aviation industry has also to play a
significant role in two of the glaring problems that have been hounding this
region since independence.
- Insurgency and Separatism in the North east
- The China
Factor
Insurgency
and Separatism
The jungles of South East
Asia sweep down from Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh across
seven other nations – Bangladesh,
Myanmar,
Thailand,
Laos,
Kampuchea,
Malaysia
and Vietnam-spanning political boundaries regardless of physical frontiers.
Ethnic coalitions, oral traditions and lifestyles based on respect for nature
have mattered more in these regions than frontiers. Here men and women, with
common origins but different nationalities, share a racial, historic,
anthropological and linguistic kinship with each other
that is more vital than their links with the mainstream political
centers, especially at Delhi,
Dhaka and Rangoon, or Yangon,
as it is known today.
It is this affinity which has played a role
in the unrest and insurgencies that have long troubled the North Eastern region
of India.
These factors have represented the principal compulsions that triggered the
Naga, Mizo, Meitei, Tripuri and Assamese affirmation of separateness from the
non-Mongolian communities that dominate the Indian subcontinent. Apart from these,
the northeastern states, though they are rich in natural resources, have
experienced little industrial or economic growth. Unemployment has caused
frustration amongst the youth. Demographic changes have threatened continuation
of the special ethnic identity of these people as also their culture and
traditions. To crown it all, this jungle covered mountainous terrain having
porous borders with many neighbouring countries, provided an ideal setting for
the growth of insurgency. Most of the North-East has been facing various
degrees of insurgency and violence with the rebel groups receiving overt and
covert support from foreign powers-chiefly Pakistan and Bangladesh. Bangladesh is
believed to be running as many as 90 camps for Indian insurgents and
fundamentalists. Some of the leaders of Indian insurgent groups live in Dhaka and lead a lavish life funded by the host
government and its ally, Pakistan's ISI. The
influx of Chakma refugees to the region is another destabilizing factor. The
violence against ‘outsiders’ or people from other parts of India have also
been a cause for concern.
Since the opening up of the economy in the
nineties, there is now a perceptible change in attitudes in the people of this
region. The development of communication
links to the region has served, to bring
about awareness about the mainstream India. As the region is present in
fairly inaccessible locals, this connectivity has been spearheaded by the civil
aviation industry. The civil aviation sector has not only overcome difficult
topological barriers, it has also helped to overcome the mental block that
exists in the mindset of the people that the north eastern part of India is a
very far away from the rest of India. With this the people are slowly coming to
terms with the fact that socio economic development by mainstream India through
connectivity is being done slowly but surely for the overall growth of the
people of the northeast. The economic
development through connectivity acts as a tool for the regional governments to
pro actively discourage insurgency and cross border terrorism.
The China Factor:
Arunachal Pradesh is one of two main
disputed regions between India
and China,
the other being Aksai Chin. China
does not recognize the state of Arunachal Pradesh, nor the McMahon Line. The People’s
Republic of China
regards the entire territory that is administered by Arunachal Pradesh as
Chinese territory occupied by India.
India
does not recognize any of these claims, and considers the state to be an
integral part of the country. The entire region is administered by Indian authorities,
despite the attempts by the Chinese to eject them from the region.
The civil aviation industry can play a role
similar to the Qingzang railway in Tibet to turn
the popular opinion of the people of Arunachal Pradesh in favour of India. Most of
the areas in Arunachal Pradesh being inaccessible by roads or railways, the
civil aviation stand as the best solution to improve connectivity between the
northeastern states and with rest of India. It can aid in the
development of the tourism industry in Arunachal Pradesh. Better connectivity
would mean increase in the volume of goods. The increase in passenger
traffic will result in greater tourism and economic activity in the state. This
would also encourage industrial houses to set up shop in the region. All these
developmental activities would be steps in the right direction to help the
people of Arunachal Pradesh to integrate locally with the north eastern region
and the Indian union as a whole.
Governmental
Role:
The central and the state government have a
major role to play in the development of the civil aviation sector in the north
eastern region and encourage the private airlines to operate in this region.
Some of the initiatives taken by the government are as follows:
- The payment of Inland Air Travel Tax (IATT) has been exempted
from all of the currently operated routes in the North eastern region.
- The sales tax for the aviation fuel would be capped at 4 per
cent.
- Operation of smaller aircrafts and helicopters for passenger
and cargo flights is being encouraged through rationalization of airport
charges and Avgas prices.
- Adequate funds as
grant-in-aid through North East Council (NEC) is being made available
for the infrastructure development work needed to be carried out in the
North-East region.
- There are a total of 23 airports in the North Eastern Region
out of which 11 have been made operational. These airports are – Agartala,
Aizawl, Dibrugarh, Dimapur, Guwahati, Imphal, Jorhat, Lilabari, Shillong,
Silchar and Tezpur. The airport at Lengpui, Aizawl is owned by the State
Govt.
- Three proposed Greenfield
airports are to be developed at Itanagar, Cheithu and Pakyong. Two new Greenfield airports
have been proposed at Tawang and Kokrajhar.
Apart from these efforts, the facilities at
the existing airports should be modernized to facilitate operation of wide
bodied aircrafts for both passenger and cargo operations and ensure that the
rest of the airports are operational
Conclusion:
The north eastern region has not always
received the attention it deserves. Successive governments have thought of this
region as a problem area which should be controlled by flexing its armed might
rather than finding a permanent political, social and economic solution. Only
recently after the economic boom has the central government turned its
attention earnestly towards the north east. Statistics indicate a significant
rise in the patronage for the civil aviation industry, there has been a growth
of 23.4% in aircraft movement in the North Eastern Region between 2004-05 and
2006-07 and a growth of 40.2% in passenger traffic for the same period.
Problems do remain like lack of specialized
medical facilities, drugs and human trafficking. But with increased
connectivity through civil aviation and other means, and with the economic
prosperity that it brings along, the prospects of finding a permanent solution
to the problems of north eastern India are bright. The Look East
policy of the Indian government envisages the Northeast region not as the
periphery of India,
but as the centre of a thriving and integrated economic space. With the opening
of the economy the Indian juggernaut is booming at the rate of 9% every year, we
can only imagine the rate when the states of the north east join the bandwagon.
