Development is often promoted as progress, but it raises the question of who truly benefits from it. In Karbi Anglong, large projects have sparked concerns over land, livelihoods, and indigenous rights. Journalist Madhurjya Phukan spoke with John Ingti Kathar, retired IAS officer and President of the All-Party Hill Leaders’ Conference (APHLC), on development, displacement, and the future of the Karbi people.
What is your opinion on large corporate projects like the proposed 1,000 MW solar power plant? Will it help Karbi Anglong or the Karbi people?
J. I. Kathar: It will not help Karbi Anglong at all. We already have the Amtereng hydel project, built by the Assam government. Yet Karbi Anglong still does not get sufficient electricity. All the power is sent to Kahilipara. We demanded that power distribution centres be set up in Amtereng or Baithalangso, but the government ignored us.
From Amtereng to Amsoi, a distance of about 46 km, power lines pass overhead, but the entire area remains dark. We did not get revenue from the project either because it is registered in Kahilipara, not Karbi Anglong. The Autonomous Council also lost revenue.
Employment was promised, but almost no local people were employed. A few casual labourers were hired and then transferred elsewhere. The same thing will happen if companies like Adani or Ambani come here. Electricity will be sent outside Karbi Anglong, and locals will get nothing.
Take the Mikir Bamuni solar project. Thousands of jobs were promised, but only one chowkidar from the Karbi community was appointed. Such projects destroy our paddy fields, which are extremely rare and precious in the hills. Destroying paddy fields means destroying food security and livelihoods.
We need micro-hydel projects, not mega projects. I personally initiated a micro-hydel project at Besithor. The Assam Energy Development Agency studied it for three years, but APDCL rejected it simply because it would benefit only local people. The government does not want development that stays within Karbi Anglong.
Do these mega projects cause environmental damage?
J. I. Kathar: Yes, absolutely. Around 18,000 bighas will be destroyed by this project. Already, about 1.5 lakh bighas of land have been taken in Karbi Anglong, including Umrangso. This is a Sixth Schedule tribal area, meant for tribal people.
We have no problem with Axomiya, Adivasi, or Khilonjia people who have lived here for generations. They are part of us. But corporate control by non-tribal, non-local companies is different. If projects were owned and managed by tribal people, it would be acceptable. But companies like Adani and Ambani are outsiders.
This is land acquisition through the back door, in the name of development. The land is being taken without directly violating the law, but the result is the same—tribal land is lost.
Do these projects provide employment to Karbi people?
J. I. Kathar: No. Promises are false. As I said, thousands of jobs were promised in Mikir Bamuni, but only one Karbi person was employed.
Karbi Anglong is facing an identity crisis. Karbis now form only about 40% of the population. What is your view?
J. I. Kathar: In 1951, when Karbi Anglong was formally created, 88% were Karbis, and 96% were tribal people. Only 4% were non-tribal. But the Sixth Schedule was never properly implemented.
The most important law under Paragraph 2(7) of the Sixth Schedule was never framed. Without it, autonomy exists only on paper. Assam imposed the Assam Land Revenue Regulation in 1953, cancelling all traditional tribal pattas. From that day, tribal people were declared landless.
Even my father, a village Gaonburha, was later labelled an encroacher on his own land. This is how tribal land was destroyed.
Because of this failure, large-scale migration occurred. Today, Karbis are only about 35% of the population. This happened due to deliberate policies and political manipulation by successive Assam governments.
Do Karbi people currently have legal ownership of land?
J. I. Kathar: Traditionally, yes. Karbi, Dimasa, Garo, Khasi, Tiwa, Kuki, and other tribes had their own land laws. But all pattas were cancelled in July 1953 when Assam imposed its land law. This was done without consent of the Autonomous Council.
In 2021, Rs 1,000 crore was allocated for Karbi Anglong’s development. Has it been used properly?
J. I. Kathar: No. Money is spent on unnecessary projects like flyovers. Roads are built, but the quality is very poor. Many roads have already broken.
Real development means giving people purchasing power, not just roads. Many families still live in bamboo houses, struggle for food, and have no income. Roads cannot help people who have no money.
The government should ensure employment, education, and income. In the last five years, around 4,000 teachers were appointed, but tribal people got only about 65 posts. If jobs were given fairly, people would not need schemes like Arunodoi. They could educate their children, build houses, and live with dignity.
Is there data on land acquisition and displacement for the solar project?
J. I. Kathar: About 1.5 lakh bighas have already been handed over through backdoor policies. Compensation is simply another way of selling tribal land to non-tribals, which is illegal. This is being done systematically under the name of development.
The real victims are tribal people, who are slowly losing their land, identity, and future.