The land that time forgot?

Much has been written of India's lingering cultural footprint in Southeast Asia. But the current elections, as the world's largest democracy with 675 million voters seeks to renew itself, are a reminder that the Mongoloid races are also a vibrant, if unsuspected, presence in the eight states of northeastern India bounded by Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Tibet and Myanmar.

South and Southeast Asia meet here. Recent joint exercises with American troops highlighted the region's geostrategic importance. If the northeast moves into the 21st century, it could play a dynamic part in India's proposed road, rail and trading links with China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

What holds it back is the philosophy of a British anthropologist and missionary, Verrier Elwin, who advised India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, that tribal areas should be frozen in time as an idyllic homeland free from contaminating modern influence. But isolation led to turmoil. Unable to identify with India, some tribes looked elsewhere. Rebel Mizos found sanctuary in erstwhile east Pakistan. Manipuri guerillas slipped in and out of Myanmar. Secessionist Nagas sought arms and training in China. These movements brought in the Indian army, adding to the ferment.

Some of the 40 million people who live in this triangle of hill and jungle still feel ethnically and emotionally cut off from the Indian mainstream. The first phase on April 20 of a staggered election in 142 out of 543 parliamentary constituencies was, therefore, marked by violence as secessionists tried to prevent people voting in Manipur and Tripura. I was told that in nearby Meghalaya some constituencies were infested with guerilla fighters and others with wild elephants, nobody being sure which were more dangerous.

The Mon-Khmer language of Meghalaya's Khasi and Jaintia tribes suggests Cambodian roots. The Ahoms, who ruled Assam for 700 years, call themselves Tai. Sikkim's Bhutiyas are Khampa Tibetans. Most other groups are Tibeto-Burmans from the Shan states, southern China or Mongolia.

Outsiders are not allowed to buy land or settle in these areas. But thousands of illegal Nepalese and Bangladeshi immigrants have fanned out across the region. Western Indian traders control commerce. Local politicians pay lip service to New Delhi and line their pockets with development funds.