Tryst with Destiny
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: August 15, 2013 -

At the stroke of midnight hour of August 14 and 15, 1947, when the British finally left India country after more than 200 years of occupation, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, who became the first Prime Minister of India, delivered his famous 'Tryst with Destiny' speech.

Addressing in the Indian Constituent Assembly, the precursor to the present Indian Parliament), Nehru proclaimed: "Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom..."

But sixty-six years down the line as India gears up to celebrate its 66th Independence Day, the question of whether India has really been awaken to life and freedom still continue to haunt the mind of people.

Every year, Independence Day may be observed all over the country with flag-hoisting ceremonies, parades and cultural events, but security concerns over possible or perceived terrorist attacks, calls for boycott of the celebration by separatist groups and triggering of bomb blasts in the run up or on August 15 have remained an indispensable feature of Independence Day celebration of India over the years.

On the other hand, while people from affluent section of the society look upon August 15 as a day off from work for parties and family outings; for the multitude of poor people, it is yet another day of struggle for survival.

The poser over India's 'tryst with destiny' that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had envisioned 66 years ago, is becoming even more eloquent today in the northeast region, which is connected to the rest of the country by a narrow strip of 20 to 40 km wide land known as Siliguri Corridor or Chicken's Neck.

Apart from its extreme location, people in the region continue to feel neglected and alienated, not just in terms of developmental disparity but also in the mental outlook of mainland Indians towards them.

Even after 66 years of attaining Independence from the British rule, people in the region's eight States with more than 200 racial groups continue to struggle with underdevelopment, unemployment, communal strife, ethnic insurgencies, separatist movements, illegal immigration and myriad other issues.

Most of the issues and problems afflicting the region today could very well be traced back to the birth of India as a nation itself.

Yet, none of the political Netas and Babus, who have occupied the hot seats at Delhi in the past as well as those who are occupying the coveted seats presently, have been sincere enough to solve any of these problems with the seriousness they deserve.

Use of military action without understanding the true nature and the root causes of all these problems has only contributed to further alienation of the region and its people, who are living like strangers in their own country. Could this be the 'tryst with destiny' that India had set out to achieve?