Indigenous rights group challenges Assam, Centre over lack of data and definition

An indigenous rights organisation based in Assam has accused both the state and central governments of failing to recognise and define the region's indigenous communities, despite invoking their identity in key policy initiatives.

 

The group, Indigenous People's of Moung-Dun-Chun-Kham, Assam, North East India, founded on October 2, 202,1 in Guwahati, represents indigenous populations from all eight Northeastern states—Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Sikkim.

 

It has raised its concerns at multiple international platforms, including the United Nations Human Rights Council and the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

 

Secretary General Anup Arandhara has alleged that neither the Assam government nor the Government of India holds a constitutional definition, an official list, or even baseline data on Assam’s indigenous people. This claim is based on an official response received under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005, from Assam’s Department of Indigenous and Tribal, Faith and Cultural Affairs, which stated that no such information exists in government records.

 

Despite the absence of official recognition or classification, several government schemes have been implemented using the term "indigenous." Arandhara pointed to the establishment of the Assam Skill University in Mangaldoi under the Asian Development Bank’s Indigenous Peoples Plan loan scheme, and the Revenue Department’s "Basundhara" land scheme, as examples of the term being used without legal or constitutional clarity.

 

Arandhara criticised the state for invoking indigenous identity in development narratives while failing to provide basic legal and demographic recognition. He also highlighted contradictions in the Indian government’s international stance, pointing to India’s written submissions regarding the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) 2007, despite domestic inaction.

 

The organisation has now demanded immediate publication of a constitutional definition, baseline year, and official list of Assam’s indigenous communities. Arandhara warned that continued neglect could lead to increased mobilisation and pressure from indigenous populations across the Northeast in the near future.