Part II of Nagaland Vision 2030
Moa Jamir
Dimapur | July 17
While tackling the issue of governance and corruption as the primary task, the Nagaland 2030 Vision Document must envisage achieving tangible and intangible goals based on ground realities and capabilities.
“Let’s get back to the basics first, correct our wrongs before we dream of flying higher with a pompous or high-sounding slogan,” is the collective inference from people The Morung Express interacted with.
Priority: basic services
An NCS officer in Administration asserted that the State Government needs to focus on solving the basics first. “If the government can invest 90% or a minimum 50% of its energy and resources on developing roads and providing water and electricity, then everything else will come a full circle”, he said.
By implementing this, he maintained, not only would the government thrive, there will be development even at the individual level.
Providing basic infrastructure to the people must be taken on a mission mode, Dr. Longri Kichu stressed. “It is all about getting priorities right. Let us have all-season roads, modern drainage, electricity, basic health care services and social security first.”
A vision based on ground reality
In Nagaland context, the document should be drawn up after deliberations with the implementers on the ground level, wrote Vyasan R IAS, in a ‘Policy Paper’ for The Morung Express.
Fixing individual goals with the respective departments and instituting automatic feedback loop mechanisms for making course corrections where required, will enhance the implementation, he added.
“We need a holistic approach and an inclusive vision for Nagaland of 2030, with development policies suited to our society, our capabilities, our resources and our ecology, and not just a mere mimicry of other states or countries,” argued another Central Government officer.
Tangible and Intangible aspects
Not short-term goals, the vision should have foresightedness to undertake development that is sustainable and beneficial all. This would imply focusing on both its tangible and intangible aspects. In the context of tangible goals, apart from the basic infrastructure, enhancing the different sectors of the economy must be a priority.
The early completion of the Nagaland Foothill Highway, pending and new rail projects; harnessing latent hydro potentialities; Urban Planning; and revamping educational sectors are suggestions highlighted by commentators. “Industrialisation along the Foothill Highway, with emphasis on sustainable industries catering to local needs, must be a priority,” the Central government officer emphasized.
Many commentators noted that Nagaland state must find ways to transform from a consumer to a producer economy.
A police officer in Home Department wants the education sector to go for a complete overhaul. “The government schools should be totally revamped taking a radical approach. Some steps towards this direction may be: stopping backdoor appointments, mandatory rural posting for at least 10 years; suitability test every after 5 years; and no political interference.”
Likewise, Dr. Asangba Tzudir in his editorial wrote, “Education as a marker of any civilized society requires thorough systems revamp towards building an effective use of human resources for producing quality and qualified students.” For all the failed vision, plans and policies, Nagaland is also in urgent need of a proper policy research centre. This will go a long way in the pragmatic transformation of vision plan into reality, not just any grand dream, he stressed.
In the health sector, the government should urgently take note of the growing menace of non-communicable diseases and stress on control and preventive measures, Dr. Longri said.
On intangible aspects, the Central government officer maintained that the Vision 2030 should be about reclaiming the past legacy .i.e. integrity, respect for age-old free spirited democratic traditions, reverence for elderly, preserving our languages, a strong civil society, and inculcating dignity of labour.
“Such intangibles along with the usual tangibles are what will determine whether our society would be better off in 2030 as compared to today.”
Economic and Social Justice
The Central government officer felt that whatever vision or projects that government comes up with; very often than not, they are manned by those having a proper connection or as an employment avenue for “otherwise non-meritorious entities” who have spent all their lives outside Nagaland or alien to the realities of the state beyond the urban hubs.
“Such practices should be stopped if all Nagaland, and not just Kohima or Dimapur, is to see a better future,” he said. In a presentation titled ‘A Nagaland where No one is left behind,’ Diethono Nakhro, Advisor, Nagaland State Disability Forum (NSDF) asserted that Nagaland cannot have a sustainable, progressive and viable vision if people with disabilities are left out it and urged for working collaboratively.
The government policies should also focus on economic justice to the remotest regions, have more inclusive engagement with civil society, stressed Teisovi Gerard Meyase, Asst. Professor, Kohima Science College. Bridging the regional disparities in education and development is the similar sentiments shared by most of the commentators.
Not just policies, but dissemination of information
While policies and schemes exist, many believe that such information is not clearly conveyed at the delivery level often resulting in failure and mismanagement.
The vision must focus on dissemination of information at the grassroots level regarding government programs and schemes, the police officer said. “For instance, many at the village level are not aware of even basics of popular schemes like MGNREGA.”
It often leads to apprehension among stakeholders and creates tussle between the service provider and intended beneficiaries resulting in failure.
Several studies have highlighted that while communitisation process in Nagaland was considered a pioneering initiative, its success was limited by communication breakdown.
Concerted efforts should be directed towards fostering partnerships and creating a well-informed community for the best outcome, a 2011 study has recommended.
In a recent Morung lecture, a pioneer in Communitisation process Rev. Dr. Chingmak Chang also observed that the process might have failed in some areas, with the lack of transparency and proper dissemination of information as a huge contributing factor.
The Nagaland Vision 2030 must not be a grand document envisaging many possibilities. The real challenges lies in its implementation.
(With inputs from Vishü Rita Krocha)
