When something begins to shine, it’s only natural that some would rather dim the lights, lest the sheen blind them completely and nudge them back into the comfort of their armchair slumber. Case in point: the much-talked-about Northeast, which is now at the centre of India’s growth story, drawing unprecedented global investments and seeing a transformation not just in statistics, but in the spirit of its people. A turnaround turning decades of neglect into a decade of transformation. And the brighter it shines on the centre stage, the more some try to push it back to the periphery, not with facts, but with fog. “Overlooking” becomes convenient when too much must be acknowledged, that was long kept out of the picture. After all, oblivion is easier than acceptance.
Today, the Northeast is not just being seen, it is being celebrated, empowered, and transformed like never before. In Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s words, “EAST is not just a direction, EAST stands for Empower, Act, Strengthen, and Transform.”
The Northeast is no longer a distant corner, it is our “Ashtalakshmi”, as the name says it all — the embodiment of prosperity, potential, and promise. While these words are music to the ears of 5 crore Indians in the region, they are deafening to those who preferred a marginalised and victimised Northeast.
The transformation of the past 11 years isn’t just about infrastructure and towers; it’s about the depth and dignity with which the region has been engaged. This isn’t inclusion by compulsion, it is integration by conviction. The results speak for themselves: `4.3 lakh crore in investment interest is catapulting the Northeast from a forgotten frontier to a front-runner in India’s development journey. It is unarguably setting the stage for the Northeast region to become India’s next economic powerhouse. The sense of alienation & discrimination once felt by the region and its people is now being acknowledged and addressed through presence, participation and policy. PM Modi has visited the region nearly 70 times. For perspective, all previous PMs since Independence together made just 21 visits. This isn’t symbolic, it is systematic. More than 700 ministerial visits happened to ensure every policy, every vision turns to an action.
With deepening ties to ASEAN, the Northeast is no longer a remote outpost, it is the gateway with Act East becoming more of a purpose than just a policy. Delhi no longer wants proximity in words, but in action — economically, emotionally & culturally. Northeast is being embraced wholeheartedly by the entire nation — a bitter pill to swallow for those thriving on propaganda. Naysayers will, of course, continue to block and blur, not just Parliament sessions but narratives of progress. But governance isn’t built on the approval of ‘those’. The Northeast’s momentum is real, and only growing stronger.
From Arunachal’s Sela Tunnel to Assam’s Bhupen Hazarika Bridge, transformation is visible and visceral. In 11 years, 16,000 km of roads have been built. Operational airports have gone from 9 to 17. New railway lines now reach what were once isolated pockets. The Brahmaputra and Barak waterways are alive again. Hundreds of mobile towers have brought the silent hills into the digital age with 13,000 km of optical fibre, expanding 4G and 5G coverage.
Connectivity is expanding and so is discomfort among those peddling obsolete narratives. Guwahati, Imphal, and Agartala are being developed as logistics hubs. Land Customs Stations in Meghalaya and Mizoram are boosting international trade. As India strengthens ties with the Indo-Pacific, the Northeast is launch-ready. The gateway to Southeast Asia lies in the development visible on ground. It is easy to quote anecdotes of discrimination. It is harder — but more honest — to recognise the systematic support being provided to empower Northeast youth. More than 60,000 youth have been skilled under the North East Skill Development Scheme. `21,000 crore in education investments, 850 new schools, 9 medical colleges, AIIMS Guwahati, two IIITs, and over 200 skill institutes have unlocked ignored potential.
From coding apps in Kohima to launching start-ups in Aizawl, the youth is leading. Dozens of Khelo India Centres, and India’s first Sports University, and you have a Northeast wired, not just digitally, but for success. Cultural festivals and tourism boosting initiatives aiming to mainstream the region’s vibrant traditions, crafts and cuisine have been encouraged. Where earlier there was disillusion and unrest, today there is participation and entrepreneurship. Violence in the region has dropped by over 70 per cent in the last 8 years. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) has been withdrawn from over 75 per cent of areas in the region, including entire districts in Assam, Nagaland, and Manipur.
From Assam’s golden Muga silk to Arunachal’s organic kiwis; from Meghalaya’s world-class Lakadong turmeric to Tripura’s GI-tagged Queen Pineapple, the Northeast isn’t just contributing to India’s economy, but curating a global identity. Cherry on the cake? Mizoram — India’s first fully literate state. Manipur — home to Loktak, an ecotourism jewel. As PM Modi said during his visit to Shillong, “For me, the Northeast is not distant. It is at the heart of India’s growth story. The sun rises here and with it rises India’s future.” Let us not flatten the Northeast’s rich and complex story into a binary of neglect and stereotype. Let us instead recognise it as the living example of how vision, investment, and respect can empower a region to rise.
(The writer is alumna of IIMC, Delhi and contributes as a consultant to the Government of India. She holds a Master’s in Literature from Delhi University and in Politics and International Relations from the University of London)