Are We Forgetting Our Seven Sisters?

Do you feel well connected to The Seven Sister states of North-Eastern India named as "A PARADISE UNEXPLORED" by a journalist in 1972 during the inaugural foundation of the north east states or are you also a bit disconnected from the traditions and ways of this perversely neglected part of our diverse nation?

INTRODUCTION TO THE SEVEN SISTERS

The seven sisters are the seven states in the north-eastern India namely,

Arunachal Pradesh

Assam

Meghalaya

Manipur

Mizoram

Nagaland 

Tripura

They are called the seven sisters provided their similarities in terms of geographical features, and their interdependence in political, social, and economic spheres. However, they show great diversity in cultural and ethics. 

Let us get to know some facts about these states which would surely mesmerize anyone and make them wonder of the beauty and serenity of this part.

FACTS THAT MAKE THESE STATES SPECIAL

• Arunachal Pradesh marks the gateway entry for India in geographic terms.
• These states are connected to the mainland via "Siliguri Corridor" also known as the "Chicken's Neck" which is a thin land which shares it's borders with Myanmar, Bhutan, Bangladesh and China.
• This region of the country has proudly attained it's title as "India's Cleanest Region".
• These are the only states which the Mughal Emperors Failed to conquer in their 200-year old rule. Guess how powerful their Ahom Dynasty's rule had been. Shocking right?
• The literacy rate here is higher than the average of the rest of the country. How fascinating in India is a place where local villagers speak English, right? Sadly, these facts are long neglected and kept away even from our sub-conscious minds.
• There are 220 different languages spoken in just these 7 states with 220 ethnic groups; dominant of which are Assamese and Bengali. How well is the diversity held here!
• If we're talking about diversity, the states are world's one of the 7 areas with richest biodiversity.
• They are packed with greenery, rich culture and therapeutic beauty.
• They are home to 70% of the total world's orchids.
• They are a host to seven National Parks and also, the smallest river island Umananda is a part of these states.
• India is regarded as the second largest tea producer in the world and the credit undoubtedly goes to our very own seven sister states which produce more tea than the tea produced by the rest of the nation.
• The world's wettest place "Mawsynram" in Meghalaya brings another fascination to the glories the seven sisters.
• Baichung Bhutia (Footballer), Mary Kom (Boxing Champion), Arnab Goswami (Journalist) are some of the internationally famous figures who have brought glory to our prestigious country in their fields and they belong to the proud seven sister states.

HOW HAS THE MAINLAND NEGLECTED A PRESTIGIOUS PART OF THE COUNTRY?

It's a matter of shame that our history books significantly glorify the rule of various rulers but fail to mention the significance of this part of the country. it's sad to notice that we hardly know about the importance of this heritage of ours which deserves to be immensely valued and taken care of.

If we take into our consideration various platforms, we will notice how side lined are our seven sister states. For an instance, Bollywood movies are typically based on the lifestyle and people in the mainland of India. Places like Delhi, Mumbai and even the southern states are mentioned very often but the north-eastern side isn't given much importance. 

We all are well aware of the cultures and languages of almost all the parts of the Indian Subcontinent but are we equally thorough with the north-eastern tradition too? 

NO! right? Only some of us are. 

Despite having an interesting and diversified lifestyle, they're simply ignored. In fact, many find it difficult to establish the difference that the natives of the seven sister states are Indians and not someone belonging to the border countries. An instance of this we saw in the movie "Chak De India" where the girls from the eastern side were misunderstood to be either from some tribe or from some other country of the east by their fellow teammates. 

The government too shows a constant negligence towards these states and it is because of this there has been a drop in the employment rates. 

There has been almost zero economic development projects taken inn order to uplift their standards with the rest of the India.

Apart from the dance forms, the north-eastern part of India has been a mystery and the gap seems to be continuously widening up.

The important facts of the states (as are stated above) are not very well appreciated or nurtured. The evidence to which is that none of them were regarded amongst the top ten tourist places in India which is costing the loss to Indian tourism and is a sheer disrespect and wastage of this unrecognised beauty.

The north-eastern India seems alienated since long due to the differences in looks, culture and attitude of government towards the seven sister states. However, we ought to conserve this affluent culture and heritage as it's vibrant domain adds a whole new dimension to the diversity of our beautiful country!

Ours is the land of culture and diversity and it's our duty to value and protect it!