Another accord

The signing of the Karbi Agreement – a Memorandum of Settlement – on Saturday between several armed insurgent groups and the government, is expected to ensure greater devolution of autonomy to the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council, protection of identity, language, culture, etc of the Karbi people and focused development of the Council area. It is important to note that the emphasis is on the fact that the Memorandum of Settlement has been drawn up in such a manner that it will not affect the territorial and administrative integrity of Assam. This is significant and will have a lasting impact on the ethnic politics of the state. The Karbis are an integral part of Assam, and this was proven when the Karbi leaders of the 1960s and 1970s had very emphatically asserted that they had no interest or inclination whatsoever in joining the Khasis, Jaintias and Garos when Meghalaya was carved out of Assam because they considered themselves an integral component of the greater Assam community. According to the terms of the Memorandum of Settlement, the Karbi armed groups have agreed to abjure violence and join the peaceful democratic process as established by law of the land. The Agreement also provides for the rehabilitation of cadres of the armed groups. This condition of the Accord assumes significance in that Karbi Anglong and the people of the Karbi Hills have suffered immensely in the past several decades because of a section of youth taking to violence. The people of Assam as a whole have already declared a big No to violence. This has made most of the militant groups and factions realize that pursuing the violent path will only push them away from the masses. Some insurgent groups of the hills had also once fallen into the trap laid by one or the other faction of the Naga groups in the past. Fortunately, they have realized their folly and come out of the clutches of the Naga groups. It is now up to the Government of Assam to ensure that every clause of the Accord is implemented in right earnest. These include setting up a Karbi Welfare Council for the focused development of the Karbi people living outside the KAAC area. The Consolidated Fund of the State is to be augmented to supplement the resources of KAAC. Overall, the present settlement proposes to give more legislative, executive, administrative and financial powers to KAAC. Union Home Minister Amit Shah has hailed the Karbi Agreement as another milestone in PM's vision of an insurgency-free prosperous Northeast. He has also expressed hope that the Karbi Agreement will end the decades-old crisis affecting the overall growth and development of the state. The Accord has also provided for a Special Development Package of Rs 1,000 crore over five years, which will be given by the Union Government and the Assam Government to undertake specific projects for the development of Karbi areas. It is for the BJP-led government in the state to ensure that every rupee flowing in under this Accord is utilized properly. With this historic agreement, over 1,000 armed cadres have abjured violence and joined the mainstream of society. It is for the Government of Assam to ensure that these 1,000 youth undergo a proper motivational and counselling programme, followed by a skill development training programme. The government should take care that these youth do not become petty contractors, throw their weight around and dislodge the existing lot of educated youth who are already earning their livelihood as contractors and businessmen in various public sector organizations. It must be kept in mind that the Accord also proposes a role for the government– both Delhi and Dispur – for the protection of identity, language, culture, etc., of the Karbi people. This has immense relevance in that the BJP-led regimes both at the Centre and in the State are committed towards the protection of identity, language and culture, particularly in the backdrop of the increasing clout of the migrants having roots in erstwhile East Pakistan and present-day Bangladesh. Finally, the Karbi Accord should also pave the way for winding up peace talks with the various ULFA factions. Paresh Barua should take a cue from the Karbi Accord and come out from hiding to abjure violence and seek a respectable solution before it becomes too late. Dispur on its part should now facilitate the process of bringing Paresh Barua, Arabinda Rajkhowa, Anup Chetia and all others to a unanimously drawn settlement.