Human Development Report 2005 : Arunachal …...Arunachal Pradesh Human Development Report 2005...

Arunachal PradeshHuman Development Report 2005Summary

Arunachal Pradesh (Land of Dawn) is the largest State in North-East India. Home to 26 majortribes and 110 sub-tribes and minor tribes, Arunachal harbours a rich diversity of cultures.It is also one of the last reserves of exceptional biodiversity, which has been preserved forcenturies by its indigenous communities, aided by its remoteness and relative isolation.

With its abundant forests and rivers, the State has considerable potential for hydroelectricity,horticulture and floriculture, plantation agriculture, organic farming and food processing,medicinal plants and ecotourism. The challenge is to use appropriate technologies andprocesses that are environmentally sound and in keeping with the aspirations of the people;to create a truly sustainable development model.

The Arunachal Pradesh Human Development Report 2005 evaluates the progress made by theState in recent years and helps to recognise its unique characteristics and special requirements.

I am alarmed when I see — not only in this country but in other great countries too — howanxious people are to shape others according to their own image or likeness, and to imposeon them their particular way of living. We are welcome to our way of living, but why imposeit on others? This applies equally to national and international fields. In fact there would bemore peace in the world if people would desist from imposing their way of living on otherpeople and countries. I am not at all sure which is the better way of living, the tribal or ourown. In some respects I am quite certain theirs is better. Therefore it is grossly presumptuouson our part to approach them with an air of superiority, to tell them how to behave or whatto do and what not to do.

– Jawaharlal Nehru

Development in various ways there has to be, such as communications, medical facilities,education and better agriculture. These avenues of development should however be pursuedwithin the broad framework of the following five fundamental principles:

1. People should develop along the lines of their own genius and we should avoid imposinganything on them. We should try to encourage in every way their own traditional artsand culture.

2. Tribal rights in land and forest should be respected.

3. We should try to train and build up a team of their own people to do the work ofadministration and development. Some technical personnel from outside will no doubtbe needed, especially in the beginning. But we should avoid introducing too manyoutsiders into tribal territory.

4. We should not over administer these areas or overwhelm them with a multiplicity ofschemes. We should rather work through and not in rivalry to their own social and culturalinstitutions.

5. We should judge results not by statistics or by the amount of money spent but by thequality of human character that is evolved.


Extracted from the Foreword to A Philosophy for NEFA, by Verrier Elwin, 2nd Edition, 1959

Arunachal PradeshHuman Development Report 2005

Summary

© Copyright 2006Government of Arunachal PradeshItanagar

Published byDepartment of PlanningGovernment of Arunachal Pradesh

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmittedin any form or by any means without the prior permission of the Government ofArunachal Pradesh.

Prepared by Rajiv Gandhi University, Itanagar, Arunachal PradeshNodal Department for preparation: Department of Economics, Rajiv Gandhi University

Photo Courtesy: IPR and Printing Department, Government of Arunachal Pradesh;Rajiv Gandhi University, Department of Botany; Nani Sala Foundation, Naharlagun;Centre for Cultural Research & Documentation, Naharlagun; UNICEF India Country Office;and Sanjay Kak, Nalong Mize, Vinay Oberoi, Oken Tayeng

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ARUNACHAL PRADESH HDR 2005

Arunachal PradeshHuman Development Report 2005

Prepared for theGovernment of Arunachal Pradesh

byRajiv Gandhi University

Summary

S. K. SINGHGOVERNOR

ARUNACHAL PRADESH

RAJ BHAWAN

ITANAGAR 791111

TEL : +91 360 2212432

FAX : +91 360 2212442

[email protected]

January 19, 2006

MESSAGE

We are delighted that this first Human Development Report (HDR) of

Arunachal Pradesh, is being published. This State can rejoice in its many unique

features. One of these is the large numbers of indigenous groups and tribes that

have inhabited the area and have managed to live together in peace and harmony for

millennia and centuries. These tribal ethnicities of this State have gradually emerged

into the present era of technology and globalization recently, but have embraced the

strange, and for them, novel elements of the present era with ease and flexibility.

We can congratulate ourselves for this remarkable transition smoothened by the

palpable progress our Arunachalee people have made in adapting to the modern idiom

of life with such ease and speed.

This HDR indicates how in 1947, when India emerged into Independence,

entire State of Arunachal could boast of just three Primary Schools, with a total

enrolment of 30 students. We can, therefore, rejoice today at the rise in our State’s

literacy rate with amazing speed. In the last 58 years Arunachal has managed to attain

literacy percentage higher than that in Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand or Bihar. In

respect of female literacy, it can boast of having left Uttar Pradesh, a State with a

literary tradition of many thousand years, far behind it. The results achieved by us

could have been significantly higher, had we not been denied connectivity though

roads, rail, and airports due to our Himalayan and mountainous geography; 82%

forest cover of our area, and our generally unsatisfactory record in road building.

These factors have prevented our moving rapidly in several areas of human

development. The growth of income achieved by our State has also been higher than

the national average. The ST sex ratio here stands at 1003 and is significantly higher

than that which exists in the country as a whole. When one realizes the low base

from which the State commenced its journey in development, one can see how

remarkable our over-all development has been.

Certain areas of concern do, however, remain, and the community itself

needs to attend to these. The natural resources of the State are abundant; its hydel

potential spectacular. Until now this potential, however, has remained un-exploited.

Our air is clean, atmosphere pollution-free, the year round climate salubrious. The

attractions of this verdant, colourful and beauteous State have created conditions in

which it can, should, perhaps must, develop its hospitality industry and tourism

including building and providing health resorts. This State has failed to move in this

direction partly as we have failed to structure adequate infrastructure for transport,

roads and communications and partly by refusing to abolish the Inner Line Permit

system which the colonial rulers had built to meet their own compulsions of security

and requirements of economy and exclusivity of the last quarter of the 19th century.

Today this State has the potential to become the orchard for the entire North-

East, producing and providing flowers, fruits, and vegetables to the region. Our lack

of connectivity and communications facilities has also created poor marketing

conditions, and acted as a brake on our horticultural expansion. Nature has provided

us with abundant resources which are not being exploited due to our geography,

topography and the inability to produce for ourselves the infrastructure required for

growth.

All these, and several other points and aspects are reflected in this Report,

making it a good Guide Book for policy makers, and a valuable document for

Administrators in this area. I express our appreciation and gratitude to the Rajiv

Gandhi University particularly its Department of Economics for having prepared this

comprehensive and objective Report.

The UNDP New Delhi and the Planning Commission, Govt. of India deserve

our appreciation and gratitude having provided financial resources that we needed

to produce it. We also thank the officials of the Govt. of Arunachal Pradesh, who

have helped coordinate this project.

(S. K. SINGH)

GEGONG APANGCHIEF MINISTER

ARUNACHAL PRADESHITANAGAR - 791111

PH.: (O) 0360 - 22124562212173

(R) 0360 - 2212341

18. 1. 2006

MESSAGE

I am glad to learn that the first Human Development Report on Arunachal Pradesh is beingpublished. The report prepared by Rajiv Gandhi University, an academic institution of repute,will, undoubtedly, be a an objective analysis of the state of human development in ArunachalPradesh.

What gives me immense pleasure is the remarkable progress made by the State on humandevelopment front. As the report states, the income of the people has gone up, educationspread widely and the general health of the people has considerably improved. And thecredit for all these achievements goes as much to the proactive policy of the State Governmentas to the whole-hearted cooperation of the people.

In keeping with its objectivity, the report has listed the downsides also. Arunachal Pradeshis yet to reach the desired level in the areas of life expectancy, literacy and infrastructure.

Another point noted in the report is the rise in the unequal distribution of resources andincome. This is indeed a cause for worries. Arunachal Pradesh has traditionally been anegalitarian society where class distinctions did not exist. Now there is a need to revive thetraditional values that emphasise the sense of equality among our people.

Arunachal Pradesh is endowed with extraordinary wealth of natural resources. And the Stategovernment is trying hard to explore and exploit the abundant resources scientifically andsystematically in a planned manner to improve the quality of life of the people. Once theresources are fully tapped, the State will not only be able to remove backwardness, illiteracyand low life expectancy but the evils of inequality also.

I am confident that the wealth of information contained in the report will prove a useful guideto experts, planners, policy-makers and the ordinary citizens. Rajiv Gandhi University,especially the Department of Economics, deserves kudos for taking up this challengingtask of preparing such a comprehensive report.

My heartfelt thanks go to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and thePlanning Commission, Government of India, for extending financial support and guidance inthe preparation of the report. My sincere appreciation also goes to the members of theSteering Committee, the Directorate of Planning, Government of Arunachal Pradesh andmembers of the Technical Committee for their valuable contribution to the project.

(Gegong Apang)

Chief Minister, Arunachal Pradesh

TABOM BAMCHIEF SECRETARY

0360 : 2212595 (Off)0360 : 2212446 (Fax)0360 : 2212444 (Res)

GOVERNMENT OFARUNACHAL PRADESH

ITANAGAR -791 111

Dated 18th January ’06

MESSAGE

It is a matter of great joy and satisfaction to see the publication of first ‘HumanDevelopment Report of Arunachal Pradesh’. The Government of ArunachalPradesh had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the UNDP, NewDelhi and the Planning Commission, Government of India to prepare the HDR ofthis State. But in the absence of secondary information on some important variables,it was difficult to go ahead with the task.

The Rajiv Gandhi University was entrusted with the responsibility of preparingthe report in November 2000 keeping in view the expertise available with them.

The University conducted large-scale survey to generate the highly valuabledata.

The Report contains analysis of the profiles of human development andproblems encountered for its promotion in the State.

I am grateful to the Rajiv Gandhi University, particularly the Department ofEconomics for undertaking such a huge research work which contributed to thepreparation of the Report. The University deserves high appreciation from us.

I am also grateful to the Members of the Steering Committee who providedactive guidance and also to the Members of the Technical Committee who preparedthe Report.

It was the Directorate of Planning, Govt of Arunachal Pradesh whichcoordinated the Project with competence. My thanks are also due to the UNDP,New Delhi and Planning Commission of India for providing funds as well as guidanceand advice in preparation of this HDR.

(TABOM BAM)Chief Secretary

Govt. of Arunachal PradeshItanagar

Message

We congratulate the Government of Arunachal Pradesh for preparing the first HumanDevelopment Report for the State.

There is a dearth of development discourse pertaining to Arunachal Pradesh. We are confidentthat the Arunachal Pradesh Human Development Report would go a long way in filling this voidas it comprehensively analyses human development status within the State.

Given that infrastructure development and human development compete for limited financialresources, it is often believed that the two are at cross purposes. The Arunachal PradeshHuman Development Report establishes linkages between the two and emphasizes the factthat the two complement each other.

It highlights the fact that any developmental gain cannot be sustained at the cost ofenvironmental degradation affecting the rich biodiversity. The developmental strategy adoptedby the State has to be in harmony with the fragile ecosystem.

We once again felicitate the Government of Arunachal Pradesh for the preparation of its HumanDevelopment Report and are confident that this Report would go a long way in improving thequality of life for the people of Arunachal Pradesh.

Planning Commission

R. BandyopadhyayAdviser (RD), Planning Commission

Government of India

Maxine OlsonUNDP Resident Representative &

UN Resident Coordinator

United Nations Development Programme

U ND PIndia

Telephone: +91 360 2277252 (O), 2277261 (R), Fax: +91 360 2277317

Email : [email protected]

RAJIV GANDHI UNIVERSITY(Former Arunachal University)

RONO HILLS, ITANAGAR - 791 111, India

Recognized by the UGC as ‘University with Potential for Excellence’

Prof. ATUL SARMA

VICE-CHANCELLOR

January 19, 2006

FOREWORD

I am very happy that Rajiv Gandhi University has prepared the first Human Development Report (HDR)of Arunachal Pradesh and thus has earned the distinction of being the first ever University in India to preparethe HDR for a State.

Initially, the Government of Arunachal Pradesh undertook the responsibility of preparing the HDR forthe State after signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with UNDP, New Delhi in September 1998. Twoyears later, the Arunachal Pradesh government requested Rajiv Gandhi University to consider taking over theproject. The University accepted formally the challenge of preparing the HDR for Arunachal Pradesh on 16th

November 2000.

The preparation of HDR for Arunachal Pradesh is truly a challenging task particularly because of non-availability of data on several crucially important variables such as life expectancy and human poverty. Life tablesare, however, available only for 15 major States of the country and no small State in the country has been ableto construct one for its population. Despite the non-availability of some basic data, Rajiv Gandhi University wasmotivated to undertake the responsibility for three prime considerations as follows:

� Research in Social Sciences in Arunachal Pradesh is seriously handicapped by non-availability of data ona number of very important socio-economic variables. Generation of data for some variables requiresconducting a large-scale survey, which is beyond the capacity of individual researchers. The exercise onHDR has given the University an opportunity to undertake such a survey to generate data on some ofthe important variables that would serve as a benchmark.

� The conduct of surveys is difficult in Arunachal Pradesh because of its hilly terrain and sparsely settledpopulation. Even so, participant-observation is necessary for collecting household level information – atask that is possible on a big-scale only when a good number of experts are involved in the project.Rajiv Gandhi University has faculty members with extensive research experience. Additionally, thesurvey conducted for the HDR could engage a good number of researchers, mainly ex-students ofRajiv Gandhi University, who got extensive experience in survey and research. Thus, it could build adatabase in the University as a by-product of the preparation of HDR.

� This has also facilitated Rajiv Gandhi University to establish and maintain a liaison as well as closeinteractions with the Government and the society that help in providing research output useful forpolicy-making.

Contd….P/2

As a first step, Rajiv Gandhi University organised a workshop on 19th February 2001 in Itanagar. Scholars fromArunachal Pradesh and other parts of the country attended the workshop that yielded suggestions andrecommendations for preparing the Report. Operationally, the University in consultation with the Governmentof Arunachal Pradesh set up a Technical Committee of sixteen members – eleven from the former and fivefrom the latter and NGOs.

Since the Report had to be prepared partly on the basis of primary data, a large-scale survey was planned. Suitablesurvey frame and instruments were designed. Research assistants were recruited and then oriented to surveyobjectives and design so to ensure efficient conduct of the survey and the quality of data, of course, under theactive guidance of technical committee members.

The survey that began in August 2001 and was completed by April 2002 covered 5257 households and a totalpopulation of 30,762. The data compilation and processing that began in May 2002, took a year to complete. Ithas indeed been both exciting and arduous to generate data on a number of very important variables for preparingthe first HDR of Arunachal Pradesh. The draft HDR was thoroughly discussed in a Workshop held on 2nd April2004. All comments and suggestions made in the Workshop were taken into consideration to modify the draftHDR and give it the present shape.

I sincerely congratulate the technical committee members especially, the faculty members of the Departmentof Economics, Rajiv Gandhi University, research assistants and staff engaged in the project. I am highly thankfulto Dr. K. K. Dwivedi, the then Vice-Chancellor of this University, who accepted, on behalf of the University, theresponsibility of preparing the HDR for Arunachal Pradesh and also provided support and guidance. Subsequently,Prof. Tamo Mibang who took over the charge of Vice-Chancellor on 16th November 2002 showed absorbinginterest in the project and guided the researchers. I express my sincere thanks to him. I sincerely thank Mr.Joram Begi, the then Registrar of this University who played an important role at the initial stage of the project.I also sincerely thank Dr. Tai Nyori, Registrar, Rajiv Gandhi University for being very supportive of the endeavour.My sincere thanks are due to all the Steering Committee members of the HDR Project, the faculty members andstaff of Rajiv Gandhi University, concerned Government officials and the public, more particularly the respondenthouseholds who extended whole-hearted co-operation during the survey. I am especially thankful to all thoseexperts who participated in the Workshop held on 2nd April 2004, and provided invaluable suggestions for themodification of the draft HDR.

The Planning Commission was a source of continuous support during the preparation of the Report. I am gratefulto Dr. Rohini Nayyar, former Adviser (RD), Planning Commission, for the special interest that she took in theReport during its preparation.

I am thankful to UNDP India, particularly Dr. Maxine Olson, the Resident Representative, UNDP, India, for thesupport provided for the preparation of the HDR. The Human Development Resource Centre (HDRC), UNDP,India provided guidance during its preparation. Dr. K. Seeta Prabhu, Dr. Suraj Kumar and Mrs. Ritu Mathur helpedus refine the drafts of HDR. We are thankful to Mrs. Nandini Oberoi for adding interesting insights and meticulouslyediting the HDR. Mr. Bhaskar Khulbe provided valuable comments to strengthen this Report.

Atul SarmaVice-Chancellor

RAJIV GANDHI UNIVERSITY(Former Arunachal University)

RONO HILLS, ITANAGAR - 791 111, India

Recognized by the UGC as ‘University with Potential for Excellence’

Arunachal (the Land of Dawn) located in theextreme north-eastern corner of India, is thelargest State in the region, with an area of83,743 square kilometres. The numerousrivers that flow through Arunachal havecarved out distinctive valleys that form thenatural divisions that make up the State.Arunachal is 96 per cent hill terrain and thehills have acted as the natural boundaries forthe many different communities that inhabit

Arunachal. It has a low density of population.In 2001, there were 13-people per squarekilometre, as compared to the country’spopulation density of 324-people per squarekilometre.

The State is unparalleled in the world for theconcentration, isolation and diversity of tribalcultures it contains. The indigenous people ofArunachal belong to different communities;

Figure 1: Location of Arunachal Pradesh

Arunachal Pradesh map based on Survey of India map with due permission from the Surveyor General of India

The interstate boundaries between Arunachal Pradesh and Assam shown on the map are as interpreted from the North-Eastern Areas(Reorganisation) Act 1971, but have yet to be verified.

© Government of India, Copyright 2004

Tawang

West Kameng

East Kameng

Papum Pare

Upper Subansiri

West Siang

Upper Siang

East Siang

Lower Subansiri

Dibang Valley

Tirap

Lohit

Changlang

International

State

District

Boundaries:Kilometres

INDIA

11

Arunachal: the land and its people

Chapter 1

11

SUMMARY

12


as many as 26 major tribes and 110 sub-tribesand minor tribes live here and 42 languagesare spoken in the State. Rich in a variety offlora and fauna, the people of Arunachal havean innate knowledge of the environment. Thecultural practices passed down fromgeneration to generation, have helped toprotect the rich biodiversity of the region. Toillustrate, local medicine relies on a variety ofplants and insects, each armed with its ownspecific healing properties. Traditionalarchitecture and construction also requiredetailed knowledge of the available materials.

The Arunachal Pradesh Human DevelopmentReport will assist the State in evaluating theprogress it has made since Independence, in

a variety of spheres, especially in achievinghuman development goals. It will also helpthe State to outline a model of developmentthat is suitable for its special requirements.

History

The area now known as Arunachal Pradesh,was known as the North East FrontierAgency (NEFA)2 from 1956-1972. It then alsoincluded the hill areas of the northern districtsof Assam. Before Independence, NEFA wasnot directly administered by the Government,and the area remained largely cut off fromthe mainstream. There was very littlecommunication between the Governmentadministration, located outside the State, andthe villages and isolated hamlets in NEFA. TheBritish enacted the Inner Line Act in 1873,which ruled that people from other parts ofthe country cannot enter the State withoutthe permission of the Government, adding tothe State’s isolation from the rest of India.After Independence, in order to intensifydevelopmental efforts in this region, NEFAwas made a Union Territory in 1972 andrenamed Arunachal Pradesh. The UnionTerritory became the 24th State of India,in 1987.

The traditional economies ofArunachal Pradesh

Till recent times, the overwhelming majorityof people in Arunachal depended onagriculture, which was based mainly onswidden cultivation, the slash-and-burnmethod that is known in North-East India asjhum. Only a small minority of people (theApatanis, the Singphos and the Khamptis),who were settled in river valleys andplateaus, practised permanent cultivation.Agriculture was mainly limited to theproduction of paddy, the staple food of the

Table 1

Districts1 of Arunachal and the main tribes that inhabit them

Districts Headquarters The Main Tribes that Inhabitthe Districts

Tawang Tawang MonpaWest Kameng Bomdila Monpa, Sherdukpen, Lishpa,

Chugppa, Aka, MijiEast Kameng Seppa Nyishi, SulungPapum Pare Yupia NyishiLower Subansiri Ziro Apatani, NyishiUpper Subansiri Daporijo Adi, TaginWest Siang Along Adi, MembaEast Siang Pasighat Adi, MishingUpper Siang Yingkiong AdiDibang Valley (New) Anini Idu MishmiLohit Tezu Mishmi, Khampti, Singpho, MeyorChanglang Changlang Tangsa, SingphoTirap Khonsa Nocte, WangchoKurung Kumey Koloriang Nyishi, Sulung, TaginLower Dibang Valley Roing Mishmi, Adi (Padam)Anjaw Hawai Mishmi

Source: Compiled from different sources.

1 There are 16 districts in Arunachal Pradesh. However, the analysis in this Report is confined to 15 districts andsometimes refers to the 13 ‘old’ districts, because data for the newer districts is not available. Kurung Kumey, DibangValley (New) and Anjaw are the three new districts, constituted after June 2000. Anjaw, created in December 2003, fromthe Lohit district, is the newest district.2 Before the name NEFA was given to this area in 1956, it was known as North East Frontier Tracts (NEFT).

13

SUMMARY

people, and agricultural land was held by thecommunity (with a few exceptions). Theproductivity of jhum-based agriculture is low,the resulting low level of marketable surplusprevented the emergence of monetisedtransactions. Agricultural production wasaimed at meeting the immediate needs ofthe family and clan. Thus, barter was the usualform of exchange and it is only in the lastfew decades that the economy has startedbecoming monetised. The economy wascharacterised by an overriding communityspirit, which allowed for security and supportsystems to different groups of people. Onesuch institution is mutual insurance orreciprocity, whereby community memberscome to the aid of a family that suffers afailure of crop.

Initiation of the developmentprocess

In other parts of the country, the process ofmodernisation began largely in the 19thcentury. In Arunachal, however, modernisationis largely a post-Independence phenomenon.It began with the establishment of a directadministrative structure for NEFA, which wasinitially governed by the Governor of Assam,

dynamics, disturbing the way of life thatmany communities have followed forgenerations. The biggest change has been inthe institution of ownership, especially landownership. With the shift in ownership fromthe community to individuals, community-level institutions such as mutual insurancehave become weaker.

At Independence, the North East FrontierTracts had a primitive economy, with a lowlevel of development (when evaluated byconventional indicators, like Life Expectancyat Birth (LEB) and education levels). Theabsence of modern health services, lowliteracy and fluctuating and low levels ofincome, kept the mortality rate high. In spiteof a high birth rate, the high mortality ratekept the rate of growth of population low, inthe pre-Independence period. However, thepeople had enormous traditional skills andknowledge, including life-skills and healingtechniques, which have been passed downfrom generation to generation.

While the process ofdevelopment inArunachal is recent,progress has beenencouraging. Income perhead has increased inthe State and the rateof growth of income ishigher than the nationalaverage.

as a direct representative of the President ofIndia. Development efforts intensified onceNEFA became a Union Territory (1972), andthe pace of development has increased evenmore after Arunachal became a State (1987).The establishment of institutionalinfrastructure in a hilly and sparsely populatedland is a monumental task. The differences interrain, culture, language, means of financialexchange, and institutions make the taskeven more challenging. For example, thetransition from a barter economy to a casheconomy has brought with it its own

While the process of development inArunachal is recent, progress has beenencouraging. Income per head has increasedin the State and the rate of growth of incomeis higher than the national average. Theliteracy rate has increased, although it remainslower than the national average. The healthstatus of the people has improved in the

14


State, but again, the improvement in healthhas not been able to keep pace with thespread of education or with the growth ofincome.

The rate of growth of population in Arunachalhas been higher than that of the country.From 1961 to 2001, Arunachal’s populationgrew, on average, at a rate of 2.98 per centper annum, against a 2.13 per cent growthrate for the country. Increasing in-migrationhas added to the rising local population andhas led to an unprecedented growth of thepopulation. By 2001, the population ofArunachal was four times what it was in1947.

The idea of human development:opportunities and challenges forArunachal

This is a unique time for Arunachal. It hasseen more change in the last 25 years than

it has seen for centuries. Arunachal is poisedat a critical juncture and is in a position tomake a crucial choice, regarding thedevelopment path it wants to pursue. Inkeeping with Arunachal’s unique culturalethos and the aspirations of its people, thedevelopment path will need to besustainable and holistic in nature. Arunachalneeds to plan its development in aconsidered and phased manner, ensuring thatthe development is people-centred yetdecentralised, community-based, but with theGovernment as a facilitator, using its resourcesin a measured and sustainable manner.

Some areas in which Arunachal hassubstantial comparative advantage anddevelopment potential are the hydroelectricpower sector, horticulture, agro-forestry andfloriculture, organic farming and foodprocessing, ecotourism, small-scale industriesbased on renewable non-timber forestproduce, and plantation crops like teaand coffee, as well as in medicinal plantsand herbs.

This is a unique time for Arunachal. It has seen more change in the last25 years than it has seen for centuries. Arunachal is poised at a criticaljuncture and is in a position to make a crucial choice, regarding thedevelopment path it wants to pursue.

15

SUMMARY

Education and literacy

Chapter 2

Education in Arunachalhas made rapid progressin the last 50 years.The State has advancedfrom extremely lowliteracy levels at thetime of Independence,to about half thepopulation being literatein 2001.

Education in Arunachal has made rapidprogress in the last 50 years. The State hasadvanced from extremely low literacy levelsat the time of Independence, to about halfthe population being literate in 2001.

To obtain a better picture of the progress ofeducation in Arunachal, the spread of theschool system, growth of literacy and theenrolment, and availability of schools areexamined.

Setting up the school system

Arunachal had almost no schools at the startof the 20th century and at the time ofIndependence there were only three schoolsin the entire State (but all three schools wereonly up to the primary level). Most languagesdid not have a written script; knowledge waspassed down through oral histories andlearning by doing, from one generation to thenext.

Newer systems of learning and knowledgehave now emerged in Arunachal, and thedomain of knowledge of people hasbroadened. Although the old systems basedon clans and communities have weakened,they are still very important here.

Literacy in Arunachal

Literacy levels in the State were extremelylow to begin with. In 1981, the State had anoverall literacy rate of 25.55 per cent wherethe literacy rate for men was 35.12 per centwhile for women it was only 14.02 per cent.Among the districts, the literacy rate variedfrom a high of 34.94 per cent in Lohit to alow of 9.39 per cent in East Kameng.

From a low literacy rate of 25.55 per cent aslate as 1981, the literacy rate in the Stateincreased to 41.59 per cent in 1991, andfurther to 54.34 per cent in 2001. The literacyrate for men increased from 35.12 per centin 1981 to 51.45 per cent in 1991 and theliteracy rate for women increased from 14.02per cent to a still low rate of 29.69 per cent.By 2001, the literacy rate in Arunachalclimbed to 63.83 per cent for men, 43.53 percent for women and 54.34 per cent for theentire population. The gap between theliteracy rate for India and the State is now11.40 percentage points for men, 10.20percentage points for women and 10.50percentage points for the total population.

Gender gap in literacy

Across all the districts and the State, thereexists a gender gap in literacy. As late as2001, there was still a difference of morethan 20 percentage points between male andfemale literacy rates in some districts.However, in 2001, the gender gap of 20.3percentage points in Arunachal is still less thanthat at the national level (21.50 percentagepoints).

Urban-rural gap in the literacy rate

As in the rest of India, there exists a wide gapbetween the urban-rural literacy rates inArunachal too. Literacy rate data over 1981-2001 shows that the urban-rural gapcontinues to be large, reinforcing the viewthat India’s development is concentrated inthe urban areas. The urban-rural gap inliteracy in 2001 was 30.5 percentage pointscompared to the gap at national level of20.85 percentage points. What is of even

16


Figure 2: Literacy rate in Arunachal (2001)

90 -

80 -

70 -

60 -

50 -

40 -

30 -

20 -

10 -

0 -

Lite

racy

rate

(%)

Tawang West East Papum Kurung Lower U p p e r West East U p p e r Lower Dibang Lohit Changlang Tirap Arunachal All-Kameng Kameng Pare Kumey Subansiri Subansiri Siang Siang Siang Dibang Valley Pradesh India

Valley (New)

Total

Rural

Urban

Districts

47.32

60.76

40.64

69.32

24.31

44.79

50.35

59.47 60.73

49.78

60.34

53.3656.07

51.32

41.73

54.34

65.2

Figure 3: Gender gap in literacy rates,Arunachal and India

1991 2001

Lite

racy

rate

(%)

Male Female Male Female

80 -

70 -

60 -

50 -

40 -

30 -

20 -

10 -

0 -

India

ArunachalPradesh

Table 2

Urban-rural gap in literacy rates in Arunachal, 1981-2001

1981 1991 2001

Urban-rural gap in male literacy rate (% age points) 38.30 30.99 27.5Urban-rural gap in female literacy rate (%age points) 40.05 36.92 32.60Urban-rural gap in total literacy rate (% age points) 41.94 34.57 30.5

greater concern is the fact that the urban-rural gap for women is closing slower thanthat for men. This reflects the fact thateducation opportunities for women and thegirl child in the rural areas continue to belimited.

Literacy in the 7-14 year age group

This age group is studied to get an indicationof how recent developments have affectedliteracy levels. Between 1981 and 1991, therewas substantial improvement in the literacylevels of children, but there were still largeurban-rural differentials in children’s literacy(but this gap may also be closing rapidly). Forall children, the urban-rural gap in literacydecreased from 39.12 percentage points to27.31 percentage points in the 1981-1991period.

64.1

3

51.4

5

39.2

8

29.6

9

75.2

0

63.8

3

53.7

0

43.5

3

17

SUMMARY

Education: enrolment, access andperformance

Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER)3

In 2001, the GER at the primary level inArunachal was 104.66 per cent4 compared tothe all-India GER of 95.66 per cent. The GERat the upper primary level for the same yearwas 79.05 per cent in Arunachal, which ishigher than the national average (58.64 percent), but substantially lower than the GER atthe primary level. The low GER at the upperprimary level in the six districts of Tawang,West Kameng, Lohit, Changlang, Tirap, andUpper Subansiri, may be due to either large-scale dropouts or never-enrolled childrenor both.

Age-Specific Enrolment Ratio (ASER)5

An examination of the data for age-specificenrolment shows that Arunachal’sperformance in both 1981 and 1991 is lowerthan the average for the country, but, theenrolment figures have improved over theperiod. In 1981, the ASER of Arunachal for the6-10 year age group at 31.9 per cent wasmuch below the national average of 47.2 percent and in 1991, the ASER for this age groupwas 38.1 per cent, again below the national

The incidence of childworkers among the out-of-school children in theage group 11-13 years isconsistently higher. In1981, almost 45 per centof children and in 1991close to 30 per centchildren in the agegroup 11-13 wereworking.

61.5 per cent, while the figure for India was62.10 per cent.

Out-of-school children

The preceding analysis shows that the Age-Specific Enrolment Ratio in the 11-13 year agegroup is higher than that of the 6 -10 yearage group. However, the incidence of childworkers among the out-of-school children inthe age group 11-13 years is consistentlyhigher. In 1981, almost 45 per cent ofchildren and in 1991 close to 30 per centchildren in the age group 11-13 wereworking. These figures are substantially higherthan those of the age group 6-10 in 1981(approximately 5 per cent) and 1991(approximately 3 per cent).

Pupil-teacher ratio

There is considerable inequality in the pupil-teacher ratio across the State and at differentstages of education, reflecting the changingaccess and enrolment of students, especiallyat the high school level. Between 1991 and

3 The GER is computed as ratio of total enrolment at a particular level, irrespective of age of children, to the totalpopulation in the age group expected to be at that level of schooling.4 The GER exceeds 100 per cent due to the enrolment of overaged and under aged children at the primary level.5 Defined as number of children enrolled in school in a particular age group (regardless of grade level) to the totalnumber of children in the age group.

average of 51.2 per cent. In 1981, the age-specific enrolment in the 11-13 year agegroup (42.8 per cent against the nationalaverage of 50 per cent) was substantiallyhigher than in the 6-10 age group (31.9 percent). This is a trend common to many Statesin India and to the country as well. In 1991,the Age-Specific Enrolment Ratio forArunachal for the 11-13 year age group was

2001, the pupil-teacher ratio improved inArunachal, at the pre-primary/primary levelfrom 50:1 to 34:1. At the middle school level,the ratio of pupils per teacher rosemarginally from 20:1 in 1991 to 27:1 in 2001.At the secondary level, the ratio rose from

18


15:1 to 24:1 and at the higher secondarylevel, the ratio rose from 10:1 to 30:1.

Availability of schools, attendance andperformance

Since the population of Arunachal isdispersed, the standard norms of populationfollowed elsewhere in the country for theestablishment of schools are not relevant.According to the All-India SeventhEducational Survey, 2002, about 48 per centof habitations did not have a primary schoolwithin a one kilometre distance. At the upperprimary stage, 68.83 per cent of allhabitations did not have school facilitieswithin three kilometres. Thus, the absence ofadequate schooling facilities both at theprimary and upper primary levels resultsin large-scale prevalence of dropouts andnon-enrolment.

Dropout rates at the primary and upperprimary level in Arunachal in 2003 were20 per cent and 36 per cent, respectively. Themain reason that students gave for non-enrolment in the age group 6-17 as given byNFHS-2, were: that the school is too far away,that they are required for housework, they arenot interested in studies, that the cost was toohigh. More boys than girls said that the maincause of non-enrolment was that the schoolis too far away whereas more girls said thatthey were required for housework.

An analysis of the performance of studentsat different levels of schooling demonstratesthat while educational facilities have increasedsubstantially in Arunachal, the teaching

methodology itself need strengthening; sothat the quality of education and theperformance of students improve. To illustrate,the pass percentage in the year 2003 was43.58 per cent in Class XII and only 27.43 percent in Class X. This also suggests the needto set up vocational training and technicalinstitutes to provide employment-basedtraining.

There are now seven Government Collegesand three private colleges (in 1964, there wasonly one college). Rajiv Gandhi University(established in 1984) is the only Universityand there is a technical education institution(North Eastern Regional Institute of Scienceand Technology, started in 1984) and twoIndustrial Training Institutes, in the State.However, the State does not have a MedicalCollege or an Engineering College, andstudents who wish to pursue these subjectshave to go outside the State for their studies.

The way forward

To improve the educational facilities in theState, the following policy changes arerecommended:

• Access to education needs to beimproved in some districts.

• Specific strategies need to be devised toengage with local communities to ensurethat education becomes universal,especially at the primary and elementarylevels. To illustrate, the problems that arecommonly encountered vary from theconstruction of school buildings, to the

Dropout rates at the primary and upper primary level in Arunachal in 2003were 20 per cent and 36 per cent, respectively. The main reason thatstudents gave for non-enrolment in the age group 6-17 as given by NFHS-2,were: that the school is too far away, that they are required for housework,they are not interested in studies, that the cost was too high.

19

SUMMARY

non-availability of educated persons (insome localities) to serve as teachers, theunwillingness of teachers from otherareas to serve in remote areas and thedifficulties in retention of children in thehostels.

• The State may consider taking externalassistance under the District PrimaryEducation Programme (aided by theWorld Bank and the European Union)aimed at operationalising strategies forachieving Universal Primary Education andUniversal Elementary Education, throughdistrict-specific planning and disaggregatedtarget-setting, especially for districts withlow literacy rates for women.

• The State will also need to tackle theissues of retention and efficiency, byimposing minimum instructionalparameters at various stages of theeducation process, and making significantinvestments in inputs that enhancelearning at the primary level. These areessential to keep students interested.

• The State must introduce measures tomitigate the costs of school attendance.However, it must be recognised that eventhe implementation of such measuresmay not be enough to overcome thehigh-perceived opportunity costs ofsending children (especially girls) toschool.

• The school curriculum should have acomponent on innovative and sustainableuse of natural resources, combined with

crafts, etc., in the local context so thatthey find education relevant andemployment-oriented. Thus, highereducation is pursued by only those whohave the capacity and interest to do so.

• The quality of teaching must beimproved. The training of teachers isimportant for quality teaching. A majorinitiative by the Education Department isrequired in this direction, since thenumber of untrained teachers in the Stateis high (59 per cent of teachers at theprimary level were untrained in March2004).

• The problem of teacher absenteeism islargely due to the lack of suitableresidential accommodation, the non-availability of food that they are used to(the teachers are usually from outside theState) and their unfamiliarity with theconditions prevalent in many of theremote areas. These problems need to beaddressed. The recruitment of teachersfrom the villages nearby is an option whichcan be exercised once local people areavailable for employment.

• The education of physically challengedchildren must be addressed, either byproviding special facilities in the existingschools or by setting up special schools forphysically and mentally challengedchildren.

The education ofphysically challengedchildren must beaddressed, either byproviding specialfacilities in the existingschools or by setting upspecial schools forphysically and mentallychallenged children.

practical learning to make educationmore relevant to the daily lives ofstudents.

• After primary school, vocational streamsshould be available to train boys and girlsin modern agriculture, horticulture, dairy

20


Health and well-being

Chapter 3

The people of Arunachal Pradesh havealways valued good health. They strive toremain healthy by following an appropriatediet and maintaining a regulated lifestyle.Despite this, however, the health status of thepeople of Arunachal is not commendablewhen measured by conventional indicators, inabsolute terms, and in comparison with otherStates and regions of India.

In the last few decades, the State has madesignificant progress in moving from no healthinfrastructure (no hospitals, dispensaries,diagnostic facilities) to a relatively widenetwork of healthcare facilities. However, theincrease in health coverage and services hasbeen at a slower pace than the expansion ofeducational facilities and the growth of theeconomy for several reasons outlined below.Moreover, as the people are exposed to newways of life and new influences (includingnew illnesses and diseases), their oldtraditional ways and cures are likely to proveincreasingly inadequate and they will needimproved access and provisioning ofhealthcare.

To obtain a clearer assessment of the healthconditions of the people of the State, healthindicators such as Life Expectancy at Birth(LEB), Infant Mortality Rates (IMR) and fertilityrates are examined.

Life Expectancy at Birth

Although there is little statistical evidence tosupport this contention, yet it is likely thatduring the period when India attainedIndependence, the health status of the peopleof Arunachal was poor. The health of thepeople has improved gradually. At 54.05 yearsin 200-2001, LEB in Arunachal was amongthe lowest in the country.

Figure 4 illustrates that there is a high degreeof inter-district variation in life expectancy. Ananalysis of the factors responsible for thislarge variation shows that the extent of accessto medical facilities enjoyed by the ruralpopulation is the prime determinant of lifeexpectancy. The other important variable isthe literacy rate. This explains why thedistricts located in the upper hill ranges,

Figure 4: Life Expectancy at Birth in Arunachal (2000-2001)

70 –

60 –

50 –

40 –

30 –

20 –

10 –

0 –

Year

s

Taw

ang

Wes

t Kam

eng

East

Kam

eng

Pap

um

Par

e

Ku

run

g K

um

ey

Low

er S

ub

ansi

ri

Up

per

Su

ban

siri

Wes

t Si

ang

East

Sia

ng

Up

per

Sia

ng

Low

er D

iban

g V

alle

y

Dib

ang

Val

ley

(New

)

Loh

it

Ch

ang

lan

g

Tira

p

Aru

nac

hal

Pra

des

h

49.7

9

53.3

5

43.3

6

61.8

0

42.5

0

55.6

5

46.3

4 55.3

7

60.0

8

54.0

2

58.5

6

43.2

0

56.3

0

55.7

0

52.6

6

54.0

5

21

SUMMARY

In the last few decades,the State has madesignificant progress inmoving from no healthinfrastructure (nohospitals, dispensaries,diagnostic facilities) to arelatively wide networkof healthcare facilities.

which have less access to medical facilities,have lower life expectancies than the districtslocated in the plains and plateaus.

Infant Mortality Rate

Arunachal has an Infant Mortality Rate (IMR)of 77 per 1,000 live births (this means thatout of 1,000 children born, 77 will not survivetill their next birthday). Among the 15 bigStates, Orissa has the highest IMR of 95 andKerala has the lowest IMR of 14, in thecountry.

Arunachal is relatively free from the problemof discrimination against girl children thatmany other Indian States face. While thepeople of Arunachal have some son-preference, it is not as deep-rooted as inother parts of India. This is partly responsiblefor the relatively better IMR in Arunachal thanin many other parts of the country.

Again, the IMR in Arunachal varies amongdistricts significantly with access. In general,it is higher in the districts located in the hillregions than in the plains. Among the 13 ‘old’districts, IMR varies from 57 per 1,000 livebirths in East Siang to 98 per 1,000 live birthsin Tawang. The immunisation of children is thesinglemost important determinant of the IMR.

Two other important variables that have ahigh correlation with IMR are literacy rate androad connectivity.

Arunachal is yet to experience what isreferred to as an ‘epidemiological transition’– a situation of a steadily improving healthregime experiencing substantial changes inthe cause-composition of death. Thus, inArunachal malaria (a disease that has beensuccessfully controlled in many parts of theworld) is endemic and takes a high toll oflives during the monsoon, especially amongpeople who live in remote villages.

Health services in ArunachalPradesh

Like the growth of educational institutions, theexpansion of health services in Arunachal isa post-Independence development. BeforeIndependence, there were only 13 medicalunits (located primarily in areas that are nowin Assam) but since then the Government hassteadily increased the network of healthservices. While the availability of hospital bedsis twice the average for the country, the samecannot be said about the availability ofdoctors. However, in Arunachal, the doctor-population ratio is not a very reliable indicator,because of the scattered settlements.

Figure 5: Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) in Arunachal and its districts (2000)

120 –

100 –

80 –

60 –

40 –

20 –

0 –

Year

s

Taw

ang

Wes

t Kam

eng

East

Kam

eng

Pap

um

Par

e

Ku

run

g K

um

ey

Low

er S

ub

ansi

ri

Up

per

Su

ban

siri

Wes

t Si

ang

East

Sia

ng

Up

per

Sia

ng

Low

er D

iban

g V

alle

y

Dib

ang

Val

ley

(New

)

Loh

it

Ch

ang

lan

g

Tira

p

Aru

nac

hal

Pra

des

h

98

88

97

67

113

59

97

85

57

87

53

98

72

62

92

77

22


From a total dependence on traditionalmedical practice, rural Arunachal is graduallymoving towards modern medical servicesprovided mainly by the Government. Duringthe last 50 years, the Government has

Table 3

Growth of health services in Arunachal Pradesh and in India

Year Hospital Beds per 10,000 Persons Doctors per 10,000 Persons

Arunachal Pradesh India Arunachal Pradesh India

1950-51 - 3.2 1.6 1.71960-61 11.0 5.7 2.1 1.91970-71 25.4 6.4 3.3 2.81980-81 23.3 8.3 4.1 3.91990-91 26.4 9.5 3.1 4.71991-92 25.5 9.7 3.1 4.81995-96 - 9.4 p - 5.1 p1997-98 - 9.3 p - 5.3 p2000-01 20.3 - 4.3 -

Note: Dash means data not available. ‘p’ means the figure is provisional.

Sources: Economic Survey, 2002-2003, Government of India.Statistical Abstracts of Arunachal Pradesh, Government of Arunachal Pradesh.

established a structure of medical services indifferent districts of the State. In spite of itsrelative newness, rural people depend on thehealth services provided in different hospitals,mainly Primary Health Centres (PHCs) andsub-centres.

Fertility rate and contraception

In Arunachal, while the mortality rate hasfallen, it is still high and the high mortality rateis associated with a high fertility rate, leadingto a high natural growth rate of population.Both the fertility and mortality rates are muchhigher in Arunachal than in the country. In2000-2001, Arunachal’s estimated Crude BirthRate6 (CBR) of 34.62 was considerably higherthan the national CBR of 25.8 and its CrudeDeath Rate (CDR)of 11.57 was higher thanthe national CDR of 8.5. The range of variationamong the 13 ‘old’ districts was alsosignificant.

In Arunachal, fertility remains high in theremote areas while in the urban and semi-urban areas, fertility is declining rapidly. Thevariable most closely associated with the

Figure 6: Total Fertility Rate (TFR) in Arunachal and its districts (2000-2001)

Taw

ang

Wes

t Kam

eng

East

Kam

eng

Pap

um

Par

e

Ku

run

g K

um

ey

Low

er S

ub

ansi

ri

Up

per

Su

ban

siri

Wes

t Si

ang

East

Sia

ng

Up

per

Sia

ng

Low

er D

iban

g V

alle

y

Dib

ang

Val

ley

(New

)

Loh

it

Ch

ang

lan

g

Tira

p

Aru

nac

hal

Pra

des

h

4.64

4.57

5.12

3.81

5.34

4.80 5.

18

4.38

4.22

5.23

4.64

4.41 4.52

4.43

4.89

4.56

TFR

6.00 -

5.00 -

4.00 -

3.00 -

2.00 -

1.00 -

0.00 -

6 The CBR and CDR were estimated using the SHDR Survey data.

23

SUMMARY

A holistic approach thatleads to a reduction inthe incidence of disease,combined with healthconsciousness andawareness generation,improvement in thenutritional levels ofdisadvantaged groups,and better access tohealthcare is called for.

fertility rate is the literacy rate. Othersignificant variables correlated with fertilityare: the use of contraceptives and the IMR.Regarding contraceptives, the prevalence rate

Figure 7: Contraceptive use in Arunachal and its districts (2000-2001)

Taw

ang

Wes

t Kam

eng

East

Kam

eng

Pap

um

Par

e

Ku

run

g K

um

ey

Low

er S

ub

ansi

ri

Up

per

Su

ban

siri

Wes

t Si

ang

East

Sia

ng

Up

per

Sia

ng

Low

er D

iban

g V

alle

y

Dib

ang

Val

ley

(New

)

Loh

it

Ch

ang

lan

g

Tira

p

Aru

nac

hal

Pra

des

h

15.8

9

21.7

0

17.2

4

41.6

0

13.0

4

27.6

1

21.5

6

27.5

2

27.3

3

22.2

2

21.9

5

15.1

2

38.1

6

23.5

0

16.4

7

26.7

1

45.00 -

40.00 -

35.00 -

30.00 -

25.00 -

20.00 -

15.00 -

10.00 -

5.00 -

0.00 -

in 2000-2001 was only 26.71 per cent inArunachal, and here too there wasconsiderable inter-district variation. Thedistricts with a low rate of contraceptiveprevalence had low literacy rates and lowlevels of development. Contraceptive usewas the least in districts without urbancentres (for example Kurung Kumey andDibang Valley (New)). Another contributingfactor to low contraception use is that manyof the smaller tribes are not in favour offamily planning, given the small number ofpeople in some of the tribes/sub-tribes.

The way forward

A holistic approach that leads to a reductionin the incidence of disease, combined with

health consciousness and awarenessgeneration, improvement in the nutritionallevels of disadvantaged groups, and betteraccess to healthcare is called for.

Some of the actionable areas whereinterventions are required are:

• More focus should be given on districtswith low Life Expectancy at Birth and highInfant Mortality Rates.

• The Government, along with villagecommunities, should intervene in the

24


areas of public sanitation and the provisionof safe drinking water.

• The Government needs to tackle the issueof absenteeism and inefficiency in thedelivery of public services. Many PHCs inthe remote areas of the State are non-functional due to absenteeism of doctors,compounders and nurses. Anotherproblem commonly referred to by thepeople in these areas is the distance tothe nearest medical centre.

• The Government should ensure that thelimited available resources are distributedequitably to the remote areas. Currently,the inequitable delivery systems arebiased in favour of accessible urban areas.

• Improved public delivery of foodgrains inthe remote rural areas should beundertaken to provide food security topeople who require it. In the monsoon,many areas are completely cut off andaccess to Common Pool Resources (CPRs)such as roots and tubers ,which providesustenance, becomes difficult.

• Awareness creation and health educationshould be a major part of theGovernment’s healthcare programme.

• The disease-surveillance system should bestrengthened to control diseases likejaundice, malaria, dysentery and diarrhoea.

• The private sector should be encouragedin the provisioning of health services,given the limited resources of theGovernment. Joint initiatives are beingencouraged especially in the urban areasand scarce resources are being directedto the more inaccessible regions.

• Investigation facilities, machines andspecialist services need to be built upsimultaneously along with primaryhealthcare services, at least in some areas,so that patients are not forced to travellong distances (usually to neighbouringAssam and sometimes to Kolkata andeven Delhi) for treatment.

• Mobile clinics and a chain of village healthworkers should be considered to expandcoverage of health care.

25

SUMMARY

Income: command over resources

Chapter 4

Arunachal’s rank is 18out of 31 States and itsincome index is 0.493.With the country’s indexat 0.530, the people ofArunachal have acommand overresources, which isslightly below thenational average.

A steady growth of income is essential fordevelopment, and critical to the issues ofnutrition, shelter, health and education, all keyvariables in human development. Arunachalis ranked in the mid-range in a ranking of theStates of India, on the basis of their percapita income. Arunachal’s rank is 18 out of31 States and its income index is 0.493. Withthe country’s index at 0.530, the people ofArunachal have a command over resources,which is slightly below the national average.

Per capita income and growth ofincome in Arunachal and in the restof India

Economic data for Arunachal is not availableuntil 1970 but since Arunachal was primarilyan agricultural economy, its income level wasprobably low. In the 1970s, industrial activitystarted with the key role being played by theGovernment.

The economy of Arunachal grew rapidlyduring the 1970s and 1980s. The 1980s sawthe setting up of a number of industries inthe State, from sawmills to paper mills, butmany of these soon started to incur losses.Therefore, in the 1990s, the economy ofArunachal lost some of its initial momentumand deindustrialisation caused a slowingdown of the process of economic growth.Arunachal’s per capita income as apercentage of the national per capita incomewas 56.14 per cent in 1971, and it surpassedthe national average by the beginning of the1990s. However, from 1995-96, the growth ofincome in Arunachal has slowed downrelative to that of national income and in1999-2000, the per capita income ofArunachal was 84.64 per cent of the nationalaverage. (See Figure 8).

Figure 8: Arunachal's per capita income as a percentage of per capita national income

Note: The Y-axis measures Arunachal’s per capita income as a percentage of per capita national income, and theX-axis represents the fiscal years; 1971 indicates 1970-71, 1972 indicates 1971-72, and so on.

120 –

100 –

80 –

60 –

40 –

20 –

0

1971

–1972

–1973

–1974

–1975

–1976

–1977

–1978

–1979

–1980

–1981

–1982

–1983

–1984

–1985

–1986

–1987

–1988

–1989

–1990

–1991

–1992

–1993

–1994

–1995

–1996

–1997

–1998

–1999

–2000

–2001

–2002

–

26


Reasons for growth

The main cause of much of the initial growthin Arunachal in the 1970s and 1980s was theinflow of funds from the Central Government.As a strategically located special categoryState, Arunachal receives a steady flow offunds from the Centre. This provided theinitial impulse to growth in the State. Theoverwhelming role of the Government in theeconomy is reflected in the high share ofGovernment expenditure as a proportion ofState income. Another factor for this growthis the high growth of labour (due largely tothe in-migration of workers from other Statesof the country).

In recent years, the importance of the inflowof funds from the Centre has declinedsomewhat, yet, it still accounts for about 70per cent of the State’s revenue and morethan 50 per cent of the State’s net domesticproduct. As a proportion of the State income,the inflow from the Centre has beendeclining, but, as the absolute value of theinflow in real terms, it is not falling – in fact,it is increasing. However, the resultingGovernment expenditure does not appear tohave transformed into high productive socialoverhead capital in Arunachal.

Sectoral composition of incomein Arunachal

The sectoral composition of income inArunachal over the period 1970-71 to 2001-

2002 shows a steep decline in the share ofthe primary sector and a big leap in the shareof the services sector. In recent years, theservices sector has come to occupy adominant position in the State’s net domesticproduct, a position that is higher thanagriculture, the traditional occupation of thepeople. The Arunachal economy washistorically based predominantly on jhumcultivation and has gradually undergone ahuge structural transformation, reducingsignificantly the relative importance oftraditional economic activities. Interestinglyenough, an important aspect of change in thesectoral composition of the State DomesticProduct is that in the last 32 years, thecontribution from manufacturing activities(secondary sector) has never been more than6 to 7 per cent of the State income.

Changes in the occupationalstructure

With the change in the structure ofproduction, the occupational structure of thepeople has changed. Though the primarysector remains the largest employer eventoday, its relative importance has fallensubstantially. To illustrate, according to the1971 Census, 80.44 per cent of the workerswere engaged in the primary sector, 19.12per cent in the tertiary sector and only 0.44per cent in the secondary sector. In 1991,67.44 per cent were working in the primarysector, 23.9 per cent were working in thetertiary sector and 8.66 per cent in the

Table 4

Changes in sectoral composition of income in Arunachal

Sector 1970-71 1980-81 1990-91 2000-01

Primary 59.19 47.28 46.19 34.67Secondary 20.33 22.21 21.56 23.65Tertiary 20.48 30.51 32.25 41.68

Source: Extracted from Estimates of Domestic Product, Arunachal Pradesh, Directorate of Economicsand Statistics, Itanagar, 2002.

27

SUMMARY

secondary sector. The decline in the share ofthe primary sector came mainly from a fallin the share of employment in cultivation.

Sectoral contribution to the growthof income

An important characteristic of the Arunachaleconomy is the rapid growth of the servicessector; which along with the manufacturingsector, did not exist prior to 1947. Agriculturealso played an important role in the growthof the Arunachal economy. Forestry andlogging is another important sector. There issignificant decadal variation of the relativecontributions to the growth of the Net StateDomestic Product (NSDP) in ArunachalPradesh, whereby different sectors have risenand then diminished in importance. Toillustrate, in the 1970s, agriculture contributed35.56 per cent to the State’s economicgrowth, its contribution increased to 41.95 percent in the 1980s, but fell steeply to a modest19.89 per cent in the 1990-91 to 2001-02period. The tertiary sector’s contribution was39.29 per cent in the 1970s and thisincreased to 64.30 per cent in the 1990-91to 2001-02 period.

Structure of the District DomesticProduct

The sectoral composition of the DistrictDomestic Product (DDP) shows that inArunachal, a State considered largelyagricultural, some districts are not asdependent on agriculture as a source ofincome. Likewise, although forestry andlogging is an important sector in the State, theimportance of this sector varies substantiallyin the districts. The industrial sector is stilllargely undeveloped in Arunachal and inmore than half of the districts, themanufacturing industries account for less than2 per cent of the domestic product. In thesecondary sector, the share of constructionactivity is larger than that of manufacturing.Finally, the tertiary sector has emerged as animportant sector of the economy – in some

Table 5

Real per capita Net District Domestic Product: 1993-94 to 2000-2001

Districts N Mean Rank Minimum Maximum

Tawang 8 10,541 4 9,287 12,082West Kameng 8 12,391 2 10,698 14,740East Kameng 8 7,237 11 6,703 8,035Papum Pare 8 9,334 6 7,848 10,582Lower Subansiri 8 6,179 13 5,811 6,899Upper Subansiri 8 7,268 10 6,075 8,438West Siang 8 8,595 7 7,842 9,465East Siang 8 10,719 3 8,223 12,203Upper Siang 6 9,878 5 9,337 10,374Dibang Valley 8 13,328 1 12,652 13,890Lohit 8 8,450 8 7,655 9,275Changlang 8 7,167 12 6,364 7,846Tirap 8 7,602 9 7,166 8,256Arunachal Pradesh 8 8,760 8,401 9,424(Per capita NSDP)

Note: N is the number of years; unit of Minimum, Maximum, and Mean is Rupee. Number of districts is 13,before June 2000. (The Minimum is the lowest and Maximum is the highest level of real per capita NetDistrict Domestic Product during the period).

Source: Computed from Estimates of District Domestic Product, Arunachal Pradesh, 1993-94 to 2000-01,Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, Itanagar.

districts tertiary activities account for a majorshare of the domestic product.

Per capita Net District DomesticProduct (NDDP) in the districts

As evident from Table 5, substantial variationin income exists across different districts. Theperiod of analysis of district income relates toonly eight years (due to non-availability ofdata), a period that is too short to study thechanges in the structure of the domesticproduct. Like the State economy and thenational economy, the economies of differentdistricts of Arunachal have also undergonesome transformation, though the magnitudeof transformation in the eight-year period iscomparatively limited. What is unusual is thestagnation of the secondary sector along withthe decline of the primary sector in mostdistricts. The districts like the State seem tohave moved from primary sector-dominatedeconomies to economies where the tertiarysector has expanded rapidly, without passing

28


through a growth phase in the secondarysector (a rather uncommon phenomenon).Furthermore, the negative growth of forestryand logging and the limited growth in theagriculture sector have meant that thegrowth of the tertiary sector has led to thepositive growth of the domestic product, inall the districts.

The way forward

The challenge is to ensure that the industrialdevelopment in this fragile hill State issustainable, non-polluting and environmentallysound. It is important that the industries thatare set up are those that are best-suited tothe State, its resources and its people. Dueto the uninspiring experience of the State,with Government-managed medium-scaleindustries, these should be largely in theprivate sector. However, the Government willneed to play an active role both as a facilitator(to lead the State on this path) and as aregulator.

The following directional changes arerecommended, so that Arunachal canmaximise its income potential:

• Since agriculture continues to be asignificant contributor to the State’sincome, increasing productivity inagriculture by using modern cultivationtechniques, such as double cropping andincreased irrigation, is a priority. TheGovernment must facilitate a change fromthe largely subsistence mode ofproduction to the market mode byproviding finance, negotiating ‘contractagreements’ and buy-backs by corporatehouses that require agricultural produce.In addition, the private sector should bepersuaded to set up agriculturalprocessing plants in Arunachal. Coldstorage facilities, transportation andmarketing assistance, are the other areas

that require attention for the developmentof this sector.

• After agriculture, the three mostpromising sectors where Arunachal hasenormous potential are: horticulture-floriculture, plantation and tourism. TheGovernment should provide insurancecover to the farmers, so that they canundertake ventures with high returns.Useful technological interventions, likebiotechnology, are also desirable forcertain cash crops like ginger.

• Local entrepreneurs should beencouraged to establish fruit and flower-processing industries.

• The tourism potential of Arunachal’sbeautiful valleys, verdant forests,spectacular rivers and fascinating peoplecan provide employment and income tolocal people. However, tourism requiresthat complementary infrastructure beadequately developed.

• Financial support to local entrepreneurs toset up forest-based industries such asfurniture, medicinal plants, extraction ofcitronella oil, etc., is needed.

• Bank finance is a major constraint,compounded by the prevailing institutionof property rights whereby right to triballand is inalienable. Banks need to devisespecial and flexible schemes that aresuitable for the region, keeping in mindthe specificities that prevail here. Theyneed to adopt an innovative approachrather than insist on meeting conditions,which require changes in the customarycommunity property rights.

• The development of the financial marketrequires strengthening (which also entailsthe strengthening of contract-enforcingmechanisms).

29

SUMMARY

Human development in Arunachal

Chapter 5

The overall value ofArunachal’s HDI is 0.515,a comparative analysisacross States isproblematic because itdoes not take intoconsideration thecontextual factors, nordoes it capture thespecific historicalcircumstances thatshape the process ofhuman development inthe State.

The human development model enacts aradical shift from the basket of commoditiesand services approach to human beings andtheir choice sets, their freedoms and theiraction spaces in shaping their capabilities andwell-being.

The Human Development Index (HDI), whichincorporates three components – health,education and income — has beencalculated to measure human developmentin Arunachal Pradesh. The HDI for Arunachalfor the year 2001 (constructed for the 13 ‘old’districts) is estimated to be 0.515.

Of the three components, the value of theeducation index is 0.566, the health indexhas a value of 0.484 and the income indexhas a value of 0.495.

As can be seen from Table 6, there isconsiderable inter-district variation in the levelof human development. East Siang has thehighest HDI value of 0.660 whereas EastKameng has the lowest HDI value of 0.362.Few districts show consistent performanceacross indicators, these are East Siang, UpperSiang and perhaps West Kameng. Tawang, for

example, is ranked at number 12 and 11 ineducation and health, but is ranked atnumber 6 in terms of the HDI due to itsrelatively high income index. Tirap and EastKameng have low education, health andincome indices and low HDI ranks.

While the overall value of Arunachal’s HDI is0.515, a comparative analysis across States isproblematic because it does not take intoconsideration the contextual factors, nor doesit capture the specific historical circumstancesthat shape the process of humandevelopment in the State. It is, therefore,important to consider the context of humandevelopment in Arunachal so that the processcan be placed in its proper perspective.

Human development – thechallenge ahead

Given the relatively low level of differentindicators of human development inArunachal Pradesh, finance is likely to be acrucial issue. The Government has been thecatalyst for the development process inArunachal and continues to be the primemover even today. Public expenditure on

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Figure 9: HDI of Arunachal Pradesh and its districts (2001)

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Table 6

The HDI and its components for Arunachal and its districts, 2001

Districts/State Education Education Health Health Income Income HDI HDIIndex Index Rank Index Index Rank Index Index Rank Value Rank

Tawang 0.472 12 0.413 11 0.780 2 0.555 6West Kameng 0.566 6 0.473 7 0.680 4 0.573 3East Kameng 0.489 10 0.306 13 0.291 12 0.362 13Papum Pare 0.729 1 0.613 1 0.376 9 0.573 3Lower Subansiri 0.626 4 0.457 10 0.191 13 0.425 11Upper Subansiri 0.552 7 0.356 12 0.408 8 0.438 10West Siang 0.701 2 0.506 5 0.467 7 0.558 5East Siang 0.666 3 0.585 2 0.729 3 0.660 1Upper Siang 0.532 8 0.484 6 0.557 5 0.524 7Dibang Valley 0.572 5 0.465 8 0.942 1 0.659 2Lohit 0.503 9 0.522 3 0.530 6 0.518 8Changlang 0.473 11 0.512 4 0.371 10 0.452 9Tirap 0.428 13 0.461 9 0.301 11 0.397 12Arunachal Pradesh 0.566 0.484 0.495 0.515

In Arunachal, as high as78.6 per cent of thepopulation is reported tohave access to ‘safedrinking water’, howeverthe quality of water issuspect because watersupplied through pipes inrural areas is not usuallytreated.

social priority sectors such as health,education, water and nutrition is high inArunachal. The high expenditures ineducation, health and water are reflected inthe dramatic improvements in the literacyrate and the school participation rates in thelast three decades. However, a high growthof the State income is the only way that theGovernment’s expenditure in these areas cancontinue.

Caveats

Some contextual factors in Arunachal restrictthe use of the standard methodology usedin the estimation of a number of variablessuch as income, consumption and poverty.These are:

• Although the problem of estimatingincome and consumption is ubiquitous, themagnitude of this problem is relatively highin an economy where production is meantmainly for home consumption and the levelof monetisation is low. In rural Arunachal,the jhum cultivators (who outnumbersedentary cultivators) depend on CPRs fortheir sustenance and it is difficult tocalculate the imputed values, in thesecases.

• The measurement of literacy is anotherproblem in Arunachal Pradesh, since manyschool dropouts claim to be literate byvirtue of having attended school for abrief period, despite actually beingfunctionally illiterate. This results in theliteracy rate being overreported.

• In Arunachal, as high as 78.6 per cent ofthe population is reported to have accessto ‘safe drinking water’, however thequality of water is suspect because watersupplied through pipes in rural areas is notusually treated. Piped water is consideredsafe, but this may not be the case. Thistends to underestimate the measure ofhuman poverty.

• The behaviour of certain variables inArunachal is difficult to explain. Forexample, the decline in the sex ratioduring the 1961-91 period may beexplained in terms of the gender gaps ineducation and income, which may lead toa decline in the sex ratio. Nevertheless,these factors cannot explain the low ChildSex Ratio (CSR), in the tribal population.The only explanation can bediscrimination against the girl child, butthere are no reports of such practices.

31

SUMMARY

Women: less than equal

Chapter 6

The understanding of the degree and natureof disparities that exist between the genders,as well as the conditions in which suchdisparities are created and sustained, helps tocorrect underlying inequalities and create amore free and emancipated society.

Gender-related DevelopmentIndex (GDI)

The GDI for Arunachal, which is based on thesame three indicators as the HDI, is estimatedto be 0.529. The GDI ranking of the districtsfollows a similar ranking pattern as the HDI,suggesting that districts that have relativelybetter HDI indicators are also doing better inGDI, and the districts with relatively lower HDIvalues have higher gender inequality. (SeeTable 7) West Kameng alone has asubstantially lower GDI rank than its HDI rank.

Well-being and survival: LifeExpectancy at Birth, sex ratio andnutritional status

LEB for women in Arunachal is estimated tobe 54.51 years, which is marginally higherthan the LEB for men at 53.66 years.

The sex ratio in Arunachal declined from 862women per 1,000 men in 1981 to 859women per 1,000 men in 1991. Morerecently, however, it has increased to 893 per1,000 men, in 2001. Among the districts, WestKameng has the lowest and East Kameng andLower Subansiri have the highest sex ratios.The overall sex ratio in Arunachal however, isskewed due to in-migration. The sex ratioamong the Scheduled Tribe population, showsa steady decline during the 1961- 1991period (from 1,013 to 998, per 1,000 males),

Table 7

HDI and GDI ranks for districts of Arunachal Pradesh, 2001

Districts GDI HDIValue Rank HDI Value Rank

Tawang 0.538 6 0.555 6West Kameng 0.424 12 0.573 3East Kameng 0.400 13 0.362 13Papum Pare 0.611 3 0.573 3Lower Subansiri 0.483 9 0.425 11Upper Subansiri 0.471 10 0.438 10West Siang 0.585 4 0.558 5East Siang 0.654 1 0.660 1Upper Siang 0.539 5 0.524 7Dibang Valley 0.627 2 0.659 2Lohit 0.538 6 0.518 8Changlang 0.490 8 0.452 9Tirap 0.432 11 0.397 12Arunachal Pradesh 0.529 0.515

although it registered an increase in the 2001Census and is now 1,003 (per 1,000 males).

According to the India Nutrition ProfileSurvey conducted in 1998, the percentage ofseverely undernourished children was foundto be marginally higher among girls thanamong boys, but the percentage ofmoderately malnourished children was higherin the case of boys. Thus, so far as the overallnutritional status is concerned, no seriousdiscrimination was found.

Gender gaps in education –women’s literacy and educationalatttainment levels

There has been a significant growth ofeducational opportunities in Arunachal during

32


the post-Independence period, particularlysince the 1980s, but crucial gender gaps indifferent dimensions of educationalattainment continue to persist. Although theliteracy rate for women in Arunachal in 2001was 43.5 per cent, the State has madesignificant strides in women’s literacy, whichhas increased from 14.02 per cent in 1981to 43.5 per cent in 2001. The gender gap inliteracy has been narrowing in the urban areasbut it has remained at around 20 percentagepoints in the rural areas. Given theinaccessibility and inadequacy in theprovisioning of social infrastructure, there isa huge gap in the opportunities available towomen in urban areas as compared towomen in rural areas. Furthermore, the datademonstrates that there exists a patternedconcentration of districts having high gendergaps in literacy rates – which implies theimportance of a shared social attitude indetermining gender difference in access toeducation.

Among literate females, a substantialproportion has studied only up to the primarylevel. In 1991, of the total female literates inArunachal, 36.4 per cent had studied up tothe below primary level, while in the ruralareas, 40.9 per cent of the literate femaleshad studied up to that level. In some districts

like East Kameng, 48 per cent of femaleliterates had not studied beyond the primarylevel. In 1998-99, the median years ofschooling among males in Arunachal were4.4 years, while that for females was only 2.1years.

The girl child: more hurdles thanopportunities?

The gender bias in educational attainmentresults from the discriminatory attitudetowards the girl child and her education.Among the boys who have never attendedschool, the school being too far away was themost important reason, followed by ‘nothaving an interest in studies’. Among the girls,the most important reasons wererequirements for household work (30.8 percent), the school being too far away (16.1 percent) and the high cost of education (10.5per cent).

Women and work

There is a limited degree of diversification ofoccupations among female workers and theytypically secure jobs in the low-skilled, low-earning end of the spectrum. In Arunachal, asubstantial proportion of women are engagedin agriculture. In 2001, 76.6 per cent of

Figure 10: Gender gap in literacy rate, Arunachal (2001)

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33

SUMMARY

female workers were working as cultivatorsand 4.49 per cent worked as agriculturallabourers. The economic contribution ofwomen remains systematically under-reported in the official data systems, since theoverwhelming majority of female workers inthe State work in the unorganised sector.Even when women are employed in non-agricultural occupations, particularly inGovernment services, a higher proportion ofwomen workers are found in the lowest ranksof the job hierarchy.

In 2001, the Female Work Participation Rate7

(FWPR) of the State was 36.45 per cent ascompared to the national average of 25.68per cent. The Male Work Participation Rate(MWPR) of the State was 50.69 per cent in2001. However, the gap between male andfemale work participation rates in the Statewas lower than that at the national level. Thisis largely due to the relatively high percentageof Scheduled Tribe (ST) population and lowlevel of development in the State. In general,the gender gap in work participation isconsiderably lower in the rural areas than inthe urban areas.

Women in decision-making

Generalisations about gender differences inintra-family decision-making processes cannotbe made for the State, given the degree ofinter-community heterogeneity. However, theinheritance laws of most communities inArunachal do not allow women to inheritland or property. Women have no right tomovable or immovable property, except to ashare of their mothers’ ornaments. It isinteresting that educated women, and thosewith a high standard of living, have lessfreedom of mobility, although they have acomparatively higher access to money thanthe illiterate and sometimes poorer women.

Table 8

Work Participation Rates in Arunachal Pradesh, 1971-2001

(Percentage figures)1971 1981 1991 2001

All Population Male 63.14 58.63 53.76 50.69Female 51.28 45.67 37.49 36.45Total 57.65 52.63 46.24 43.97

Rural Male 62.78 58.50 53.69 51.13Female 52.27 47.64 40.86 41.33Total 57.88 53.42 47.69 46.47

Urban Male 70.32 60.24 54.18 48.99Female 10.58 11.62 11.95 16.69Total 51.57 41.47 36.39 34.19

Note: (i) Work Participation Rates = {Total Workers (Main + Marginal) / Total Population} ×100. (ii) Figures for 2001 are based on provisional population totals.

Source: Census of India, 2001, Series-13, Arunachal Pradesh, Provisional Population Totals,Paper-3 of 2001.

Gender and governance

In terms of representation in the formalstructures of political power, women inArunachal remain completely marginalised.The share of women members in the State

Legislative has never exceeded 5 per centand in the last 25 years, there has only beenone woman MP from the State. The traditionalvillage chief and the village councils,dominated by men, continue to remain thekey political institutions at the grass rootslevel. Women are rarely allowed to take partin these traditional institutions and thewomen of all tribes have little say incommunity affairs.

The relatively large share of the unorganisedsector and women’s high participation in thissector, the discrepancy between women’searnings and their control over income, and

7Defined as the proportion of total workers to total population involved in various economically productiveactivities.

34


the terms of political discourse make thesevariables inadequate for judging the realempowerment of women in India (HDR-Karnataka, 1999). The Gender EmpowermentMeasure (GEM) indicator has not beenestimated for the State for these reasons.

Crime against women

Although the degree and nature of violencedirected against women varies across regions,classes and cultures, often women feel moreinsecure in the most developed and well-connected regions, particularly in the cities.The question of violence against women inArunachal is extremely complex because thepolice and legal infrastructure is lessdeveloped in the State than in the rest of thecountry. Traditional community laws andinstitutions continue to play a vital role inconflict resolution and administration ofjustice.

The challenge before the Government andthe civil society in Arunachal is two-fold: onthe one hand, steps have to be taken toprevent crime against women and on theother, there is an urgent need for awarenessand gender sensitisation campaigns, bothwithin the law-enforcing agencies and amongthe general public, so as to ensure betterreporting of crimes against women.

The way forward

There is a clear need to mainstream genderconcerns in the overall policy-making andimplementation of various Government-sponsored programmes, as enormouschallenges lie before Arunachal in achievinggender equality in access to health, educationand earnings. The success of programmeswill remain limited unless there is atransformation of the overall framework ofgovernance and decision-making to make itmore inclusive and participatory.

The following policy changes arerecommended for Arunachal if it is to achievethis objective:

• Implement a gender-budgeting initiative(which has already been adopted by theGovernment of India) and include thefollowing measures:

– A mechanism to collate genderdisaggregated data from relevantdepartments should be developed toobtain the gender-wise relevantstatistical database, targets andindicators.

– A gender audit of plans, policies andprogrammes of various Ministries withpro-women allocations should beconducted.

– Provisions for women in compositeprogrammes under education, healthand rural development sectors, shouldbe segregated to protect theprovisions, by placing restrictions ontheir use for other purposes.

• Enhance women’s capacities (especiallyaccess to education and health).

• Expand opportunities for women to earnincome and participate in decision-makingforums.

• Ensure legal justice for women.

• Realise the goal of universal high qualityprimary education for women, byimplementing area-specific targetedprogrammes.

• Provide women with easily accessible andcost-effective facilities for highereducation and distance education.

35

SUMMARY

• Take steps to reduce infant and maternalmortality rates through a phased, time-bound programme.

• Improve the quantity and quality of accessto health services in rural areas.

• Expand employment opportunities forwomen, particularly in the public sector.

• Enforce the legally prescribed minimumand equal wages for women and menboth in the formal and informal sectors.

• Encourage women entrepreneurs,particularly in micro-enterprises, througheffective credit support, skillenhancement and other measures.

• Prepare and maintain a gender-disaggregated and accurate database foreffective policy formulation.

• Representation and participation ofwomen in the legislative, judiciary andexecutive bodies should be mademandatory.

The question of violenceagainst women inArunachal is extremelycomplex because thepolice and legalinfrastructure is lessdeveloped in the Statethan in the rest of thecountry. Traditionalcommunity laws andinstitutions continue toplay a vital role in conflictresolution andadministration of justice.

• Legally bind political parties to reserve aminimum quota for women in partydecision-making bodies and in thedistribution of party tickets for elections.

• Provide gender-sensitisation training formale members of the legislature, civilservants, and other members of theGovernment to achieve gender equality ingovernance.

• Strengthen the State Commission forWomen, so that it can better address theproblems faced by women in Arunachal.

These measures call for a more gender-centric paradigm of development, and thecourage to promote a more equitable society.

36


Deprivation and inequality

Chapter 7

Prior to the launch of the new developmentprogramme in the post-Independence period,the degree of inequality in the distribution ofresources in Arunachal was limited. However,shaped by the new property rights regimecharacterising the development programme,in recent years, the inequalities have risen tounprecedented proportions in communities,which not so long ago, were quite egalitarianand had strong social protective mechanismsin place. The community spirit also meant thatthe individual incentive for savings andaccumulation of capital was low, whichresulted in a very low rate of capitalaccumulation. However, although thecommunity was poor, the individual did notfeel poor in the absence of high inequalitiesin resource distribution.

The property rights regime that evolved withthe growth of the non-agricultural sectors hasbecome instrumental in driving the profitmotive, and in generating incentives forsavings, investment and accumulation ofcapital. This has weakened the traditionalinstitutions, and new institutions have notemerged as viable alternatives to the old andtested institutions. Measured by the Gini-Coefficients, inequality is found to be higherin assets and land, and lower in income andconsumption. The relatively lower inequalityin income and more particularly, inconsumption, is due to the high proportionof consumable items including food and fuelwood, which the poor collect from the forestsand other Common Pool Resources. Thus, thetraditional redistributive mechanisms have notyet vanished completely in the rural areas.

Inequality in land holdings

There is considerable inequity in the operationof land holdings, and small and marginalholders operate only a small proportion of theland8. According to a study conducted in1995-96, 19.24 per cent of the people weremarginal landholders and operated only 3.03per cent of the land. Similarly, 7.64 per centof the land was under the operation of smallfarmers who constituted 19.33 per cent ofthe farming households. Thus, only about 10per cent of the land is operated by close to40 per cent of the farming households. Incontrast, large land operators, who constituted5.75 per cent of the total number of farmers,had as high as 23.65 per cent of the landunder their operation.

The high inequality in landholding isindicative of the fact that some farms areoperated on a large scale, especially in theareas where permanent cultivation has beenintroduced, but in the other areas where thetopography is hilly the scale of farmoperations is relatively small.

Inequality in asset holdings

Asset distribution among the households alsodisplays a high degree of inequality. Accordingto SHDR Survey data, 10 per cent of thehouseholds at the bottom possessed less than2 per cent of the total assets; while the top10 per cent households had more than 40per cent of the share. The bottom 20 per centof households owned less than 5 per cent ofthe assets, while the top 20 per cent of

8 Since the main occupation of the majority of the people is agriculture, ownership of land is an important indicatorof the access to productive assets. In the absence of data on land ownership, data on operational land holdings isused for this analysis.

37

SUMMARY

The property rightsregime that evolvedwith the growth of thenon-agricultural sectorshas becomeinstrumental in drivingthe profit motive, and ingenerating incentivesfor savings, investmentand accumulation ofcapital. This hasweakened thetraditional institutions,and new institutionshave not emerged asviable alternatives tothe old and testedinstitutions.

households owned more than 47 per cent ofthe assets. The average asset holding of thebottom 10 per cent of households was onlyRs.3,240, while that of the top 10 per centof households was Rs.141,280. These figuresshow the high inequality in the distributionof wealth. District-level data reveals a highdegree of inequality across the districts.For example, in East Siang, the differencebetween the average value of assets ofthe top 10 per cent and the bottom 10 percent of households was even higher(Rs. 206,460).

Inequality in income9

There is considerable inequality in incomedistribution, both at the inter-person as well

as at the inter-district levels. According to theSHDR Survey data, the bottom 10 per cent ofthe households had less than 3 per cent ofthe share, while the top 10 per cent ofhouseholds accounted for more than 30 percent of the per capita household income.Similarly, the top 20 per cent of people hada share of more than 45 per cent, while thebottom 20 per cent had less than 6 per centof the income. The difference between theaverage income of the top 10 per cent andthe bottom 10 per cent of households wasRs.28,730 and the district with the highestreported income inequality is East Siang, witha Gini Coefficient value of 47.98. The recentrise of non-agricultural income in this districtis one possible explanation for the highinequality.

Table 9

District-wise values of Gini-Coefficients (in %)

Districts Consumption Income Land Asset

Tawang 12.61 8.21 15.03 38.18West Kameng 22.14 29.79 32.83 60.87East Kameng 12.26 29.69 44.02 40.50Papum Pare 19.80 41.32 40.98 63.72Kurung Kumey 11.34 31.43 35.64* 30.27Lower Subansiri 17.90 35.58 35.64* 52.43Upper Subansiri 21.66 44.67 49.48 53.24West Siang 18.04 37.40 44.08 29.78East Siang 20.58 47.98 28.50 62.48Upper Siang 19.15 35.54 33.30 53.90Lower Dibang Valley 20.28 41.75 56.33@ 40.98Dibang Valley (New) 11.26 38.53 56.33@ 34.51Lohit 21.67 42.25 46.17 64.27Changlang 19.65 32.37 32.09 32.29Tirap 19.78 38.61 36.64 35.57Arunachal Pradesh 20.41 40.27 46.55 48.18

Gini-coefficient is a widely used measure of inequality in income or any other quantitative variable.Note: * Relates to Lower Subansiri district (1995-96). @ Relates to Dibang Valley (1995-96).

Source: Income, Consumption and Asset data are from SHDR Survey, and Land data is from Agricultural Census, 1995-96,Arunachal Pradesh.

9 Household income has been estimated by the production method where the imputed value of products collectedfrom Common Pool Resources (for example, fuel wood, fruits, roots and vegetables, fish, animals, etc.) has beenadded.

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Inequality in Consumption10

Consumption expenditure reveals a moderatedegree of inequality. Consumption inequalityvaries across the districts. According to SHDRSurvey data, the Gini Coefficients ranged from11.26 per cent in Dibang Valley (New) to22.14 per cent in West Kameng. Thedifference between the average per capitaconsumption of the top 10 per cent ofhouseholds and the bottom 10 per cent ofhouseholds was the highest in West Kameng(Rs. 9,824) followed by Lower Dibang Valley(Rs. 9,182). In East Siang, too, this differencewas very high (Rs. 9,166). However,consumption inequality is less than asset andland inequality in the State.

Poverty

In Arunachal, very little research has beendone on poverty and the limited informationthat is available makes it difficult to estimate

41.4 per cent in 1993-94, declining to 23.4per cent in 1999-2000. According to thisstudy, urban poverty in Arunachal declinedfrom 5.8 per cent in 1993-94 to 5 per centin 1999-2000. Since this estimate is based onState-specific samples, it is more acceptablethan that of the Planning Commission.

District-level poverty estimation on the basisof National Sample Survey (NSS) data isproblematic because of the small size of thesample. To estimate district-wise povertyratios, the SHDR Survey data of 5,257households was used, but once again theAssam poverty line was used, in the absenceof any other alternative. According to theSHDR estimates, 23.7 per cent of the peopleof Arunachal were living in poverty in 2000-2001. Rural poverty (26.7 per cent) in theState was higher than urban poverty (12.3per cent). While the rural poverty ofArunachal was comparable to that in thecountry as a whole (27.09 per cent), urbanpoverty in Arunachal at 12.3 per cent isconsiderably lower than the all-India figure of23.62 per cent. Poverty varies over thedistricts, ranging from 30.3 per cent inChanglang to 17.3 per cent in East Siang.Using district-level data, a high negative

10 Includes food, housing, clothing, house gas, electricity, fuel, etc., all relating to food expenditure and non-foodconsumption like tobacco, drinks and education.

In Arunachal, very littleresearch has been doneon poverty and thelimited information thatis available makes itdifficult to estimate theextent and intensity ofpoverty. Some attemptshave been made toquantify and assesspoverty, but theseestimates have variousshortcomings.

the extent and intensity of poverty. Someattempts have been made to quantify andassess poverty, but these estimates havevarious shortcomings.

The Planning Commission estimated that39.35 per cent of the people of Arunachalwere below the poverty line in 1993-94,which decreased to 33.47 per cent in 1999-2000. R. Radhakrishna and others estimatedthe rural poverty ratio in Arunachal to be

correlation is found between poverty andhousehold consumption and betweenpoverty and the per capita household assets.

Human Poverty Index (HPI) ofArunachal

A mono-dimensional measure based onincome/consumption fails to capture thehardship and the lack of opportunity for thepeople of Arunachal. The problems caused byits sparse settlements, hilly topography andinaccessibility will not be recognised by anindicator based solely on consumption andincome.

39

SUMMARY

Table 10

Human Poverty Index of Arunachal Pradesh

Districts/State Illiteracy Probability Underweight % Population Unweighted HPI HPI RankRate at Birth not Children Under not Using Average of

(2001) % Surviving Age 5 Improved Underweightto Age 40 Water Children and

Sources % of Populationnot Using Improved

WaterSources

Tawang 52.68 34.890 51.610 25.58 38.595 43.453 10West Kameng 39.24 28.850 58.910 18 38.455 36.115 4East Kameng 59.36 43.010 69.770 12.71 41.240 49.270 13Papum Pare 30.68 22.640 63.730 17.97 40.850 33.085 2Lower Subansiri 55.21 31.020 62.580 24.93 43.755 45.465 11Upper Subansiri 49.65 34.350 57.240 21.23 39.235 42.068 8West Siang 40.53 27.120 54.550 13.14 33.845 34.694 3East Siang 39.27 21.640 47.060 6.58 26.820 31.069 1Upper Siang 50.22 33.240 60.710 20.22 40.465 42.460 9Dibang Valley 41.11 33.690 62.500 18.22 40.360 38.668 6Lohit 43.93 22.570 57.300 27.06 42.180 38.508 5Changlang 48.68 24.140 52.630 36.58 44.605 41.739 7Tirap 58.27 31.640 61.290 28.72 45.005 47.457 12Arunachal Pradesh 45.66 28.070 58.820 22.46 40.610 39.475

The HPI11 thus measures the deprivations inhealth, education and economic provisioning.The HPI for Arunachal is estimated to be39.47 per cent; a value that is high by anystandard and much higher than the nationalHPI of 33.1 per cent. However, thepercentage of people under the poverty line(income poverty alone) in Arunachal is lessthan the ratio for the country as a whole.

A high HPI and a medium HDI of the Stateimplies that the benefit of humandevelopment has not spread sufficiently toimpact human poverty. Specifically, it impliesthan an increase in income has failed toimprove the quality of life of the people ofArunachal.

Many districts in Arunachal have high levelsof human poverty. The HPI in the districtsranges from 49.27 per cent in East Kamengto 31.06 per cent in East Siang. However, asTable 10 shows, there is no one-to-onerelationship between the different dimensionsof HPI. For example, Papum Pare is the leastdeprived in terms of illiteracy, while inpercentage of population not using safedrinking water sources, it is in the fourthplace and, as for the underweight childrenunder age 5, its rank is at number 12.

Inaccessibility and human poverty

Correlation analysis shows a close associationof the different measures of deprivation with

A high HPI and amedium HDI of theState implies that thebenefit of humandevelopment has notspread sufficiently toimpact human poverty.Specifically, it impliesthan an increase inincome has failed toimprove the quality oflife of the people ofArunachal.

11 The HPI has been estimated for the 13 ‘old’ districts but the analysis does refer to the 15 districts.

40


inaccessibility – the people in accessible areasare found to suffer most from the differenttypes of deprivation.

According to the Arunachal Pradesh PublicWorks Department (1997), 61.47 per cent ofthe villages in the State had no connectivity.These villages did not have any constructedroads within a radius of one km in the caseof hilly terrain and in a radius of 5 km in theplains. In the State, as a whole, 26.56 per centof the people lived in inaccessible areas.Since both unconnected villages and thepercentage of people with no roadconnectivity show a positive association withHPI, many of the inaccessible districts aredistricts with high HPI.

Deprivation in health

In Arunachal, the hilly and steep terrain,inaccessibility and scattered habitations resultin poor access to medical facilities andconsequently to poor health. In the State, 28per cent of the people are expected not to

survive beyond the age of 40, compared to16.7 per cent at the national level. Notsurprisingly, districts located in high-altitudeareas and those less accessible have morepremature deaths. In Kurung Kumey, EastKameng and Dibang Valley (New), more than40 per cent of the population is not expectedto survive beyond the age of 40. In contrast,the well-connected districts with more plainareas have substantially higher lifeexpectancies. For example, in Papum Pare, adistrict with good connectivity and access tohealthcare facilities, approximately 23 percent of people are not expected to livebeyond 40 years of age. Surprisingly, in thecases of premature deaths variables such asmedical facilities or the distance of the villagefrom the health centres, doctor-populationratio and hospital beds per 1,000 people, didnot have any significant bearing on prematuredeaths. This suggests that the creation ofmedical facilities alone is not sufficient:awareness, willingness and road connectivityare the more important variables in improvingthe health status of the population.

Figure 11: Adult illiteracy-1981, 1991, 2001

100 -

90 -

80 -

70 -

60 -

50 -

40 -

30 -

20 -

10 -

0 -Tawang West East Papum Lower Upper West East Upper Dibang Lohit Changlang Tirap Arunachal

Kameng Kameng Pare Subansiri Subansiri Siang Siang Siang Valley Pradesh

1981

1991

2001

73.3

662

.02

75.2

758

.03

45.8

9

91.8

480

.06

65.5

3

35.8

1

77.3

161

.96

61.6

9

86.3

367

.958

.01

74.1

59.1

946

.97

71.8

60.3

946

.48

57.9

68.9

657

.01

46.1

1

66.7

454

.83

49.8

2 60.0

151

.23

78.1

71.4

462

.1

76.2

862

.751

.83

Ad

ult

illit

erac

y (%

)

41

SUMMARY

Deprivation in knowledge and skill

In spite of the substantial progress thatArunachal has made in literacy, adult literacyis still high. More than half of the adults inthe State are still illiterate. Starting from anadult illiteracy rate of 88.7 per cent in 1971,Arunachal has succeeded in reducing the rateto 76.28 per cent in 1981 and to 51.83 percent in 2001.

This substantial achievement is mainly due tothe expansion of educational facilities sincethe 1970s.

Illiteracy rate (7+ population)

Arunachal has the highest illiteracy in thecountry, except for Jharkhand and Bihar.Illiteracy is highest in East Kameng (59.36 percent). This is largely due to poor connectivityand limited schooling facilities in the district.Tawang, East Kameng, Lower Subansiri, UpperSiang and Changlang also have high illiteracy.Only in Papum Pare is the illiteracy rate closeto the national average, here it is just over30 per cent.

Never-enrolled children and out-of-school children

Never enrolled children and dropoutsconstitute out-of-school children. Except forNagaland (in some years) all the States of

North-East India have higher school dropoutrates than the rest of the country. Thesituation in Arunachal is most disturbing.While there has been some improvement inthe last decade or so, the Sarva ShikshaAbhiyan Annual Plan says that 32.67 per centof habitations do not have school facilities.

12 In Arunachal, the standard definition of housing and household amenities is inappropriate because much of therural population continues to live in traditional houses. These are built in different styles, using locally availablematerials and reflect the unique culture of the people.

Standard of living

To fully measure the overall economicprovisioning for a decent standard of living,private income alone is not an adequateindicator, because it does not include crucialpublic services such as health care andeducation. To measure the deprivation instandard of living in Arunachal, thepercentage of underweight children (0-4), thepercentage of people without a safe sourceof drinking water and household amenitiesare analysed. Housing was not consideredseparately because of special cultural factors,specific to Arunachal12.

Underweight Children

According to estimates made by the SHDRSurvey team, as high 59 per cent of childrenunder five years of age, in Arunachal, wereunderweight but interestingly the percentageof underweight children is considerably lower,when the children are less than one year ofage (46.97 per cent). It increases sharply to66.33 per cent for children in the 1-2 yearage group. After that it declines to 60.09percent for the 2-4 age group. Contrary to

what one might expect, intensive fieldinvestigations indicate that the low level ofincome is not the singular cause for childrenbeing underweight. Instead, other factors such

Arunachal has thehighest illiteracy in thecountry, except forJharkhand and Bihar.Illiteracy is highest inEast Kameng (59.36 percent). This is largely dueto poor connectivity andlimited schoolingfacilities in the district.Tawang, East Kameng,Lower Subansiri, UpperSiang and Changlangalso have high illiteracy.

42


as illiteracy, healthcare practices and foodhabits are important determinants in thepercentage of underweight children.

Lack of safe sources of drinkingwater

The proportion of people that did not haveaccess to safe drinking water in Arunachalwas as high as 56.11 per cent in 1981 butthis declined sharply to 29.98 per cent in1991 and fell further to 22.4 per cent in 2001.The State’s position vis-à-vis the country withregard to the provision of drinking water wasbetter both in 1981 and 1991, but in 2001the State slipped marginally below thenational average. However, the distance of thesource of water from the household mustalso be taken into consideration. In 2000-2001, more than 7 per cent of the peoplesaid the source of safe drinking water was faraway from their homes. This percentageshould thus be added to the 22.46 per cent,who did not have a safe source of water

households (59.15 per cent) did not haveelectricity in 1991.There was considerablerural-urban disparity in the provision of theseamenities. While the use of toilets wasrelatively high in Arunachal compared to theother States of India, in East Kameng as highas 77 per cent of the households did nothave toilet facilities. As for electricity, districtslike East Kameng, Upper Subansiri and Lohitsuffer from acute deprivation. More than 85per cent of the households of East Kamengdid not have electricity in 1991 and in UpperSubansiri also this percentage was high (75.48per cent).

The way forward

Interestingly, the broad social goals embodiedin the traditional values of differentcommunities of Arunachal and theprescriptive aspects of the humandevelopment approach have manycommonalities.

The following policy initiatives are suggested:

• Allocations need to be enhanced, so as toexpand health and schooling facilities,which will largely benefit the poor.

The proportion of peoplethat did not have accessto safe drinking water inArunachal was as high as56.11 per cent in 1981but this declined sharplyto 29.98 per cent in1991 and fell further to22.4 per cent in 2001.

supply, because they are unlikely to be usingthe distant source. This means that nearly athird of the population does not have accessto safe drinking water. Among the districts,Changlang had the highest percentage ofpeople without access to a safe source ofdrinking water (36.58 per cent).

Household amenities

In Arunachal, more than half of thehouseholds (52.58 per cent) did not havesanitary toilets and three out of five

• In order that the community reclaims thepublic space, various redistributivemechanisms which are in-built into thetraditional socio-economic system can berevived by increasing communityparticipation in the formulation,implementation and monitoring ofGovernment programmes.

• In reducing human poverty, bettermonitoring of existing Governmentprogrammes must be undertaken, sincethe delivery is inadequate. Secondly, aState-specific design of programmes thatfactor in the special needs and objectivesof the State, is required. These

43

SUMMARY

Sanitation and hygiene measures, childcare practices, how to give supplementaryfood to young children, and knowledge of locally available nutritious food, can allbe imparted through an integrated programme, which has the potential to have afar-reaching impact.

interventions need to be designedappropriately and sensitively and applied ina target-specific manner to be effective.

• In order to reduce educational deprivation,emphasis should be given to theestablishment and monitoring of villageAaganwadis and Sarva Shiksha Kendras, sothat children belonging to the interior andinaccessible villages can start going toschool at the right age.

• A special effort is required to reduce adultilliteracy. The curriculum of this programmeshould be designed in such a way as tocater to the day-to-day requirements ofthe people. An awareness of health andchildcare programmes and relatedprecautions can form the backbone of thisinitaitive.

• Sanitation and hygiene measures, childcarepractices, how to give supplementary foodto young children, and knowledge oflocally available nutritious food, can all beimparted through an integratedprogramme, which has the potential tohave a far-reaching impact.

• Steps should be taken to increase accessand connectivity of remote villages andsettlements.

• A district-wise analysis of priority areas isrequired, so that each district can focus onthe area where its relative deprivation isthe highest and move forward from there.

44


Infrastructure:key to development

Chapter 8

At the time of Independence, there wereonly three main jeepable roads in Arunachal.In the 1950s, the Government concentratedon the expansion of regular administrationacross the Inner Line (in consonance with theNehru-Elwin Policy of gradual integration).This gradualist approach to development wasfollowed till 1962, when the reverses facedby India in the military engagement withChina, led to a more active integration policy.

On the basis of the findings of a techno-economic survey of NEFA conducted by theNational Council of Applied EconomicResearch (NCAER), the highest priority has

Transport – road network limitedbut expanding

The construction of roads really began in the1960s, and starting from only 500 km, theroad length has increased to more than15,000 km in 2000-2001. However, despitethe continuous efforts to extend the roadnetwork in the State, the road density was stillvery low in 2001 (17.36 km per 100 sq kmof area as against the national average of 82km per 100 sq km). The main reasons for thislow density are: the difficult topography andundulating terrain, the late start of thedevelopment process, and the high cost ofconstruction in the inaccessible and remoteareas.

Initially preference was given to defencerequirements in the construction of road

13 Source: Arunachal Pradesh Public Works Department, 1997.

The State does not havelateral roads connectingdistricts, since roads runvertically connectingplaces in Assam withdistricts or sub-divisionsin Arunachal. This hasresulted in a hightransportation cost.

been given to infrastructure development,particularly to transport and communicationin subsequent Five-Year Plans. Over 70 percent of Plan funds have been allocated forthe development of infrastructure since theFifth Five Year Plan. Economic infrastructurelike transport and communication, power andirrigation received higher priority than socialinfrastructure in the allocation of Plan funds.

infrastructure rather than to the economicdevelopment of the State. The emphasis wason constructing roads from Assam to thenorthern borders owing to strategic reasons.As a result the inter-district communicationcontinues to be difficult even today. The Statedoes not have lateral roads connectingdistricts, since roads run vertically connectingplaces in Assam with districts or sub-divisionsin Arunachal. This has resulted in a hightransportation cost.

While 38.53 per cent of the villages wereconnected in 199713, the percentage figuresfor the access enjoyed by the people were

45

SUMMARY

Arunachal has a hugepotential for thedevelopment ofhydroelectric powerbecause of its manyrivers. The State has thepotential to supply athird of totalhydroelectricrequirement of thecountry.

45

better. In rural Arunachal, 46.51 per cent ofthe people had access to pucca roads, 26.93per cent to kutcha roads, and 26.56 per centhad no connectivity at all. Connectivitycontinues to be a major concern in morethan half of the State, and the developmentof road networks that connect different partsof the State with each other on a lateral axisrather than on a north-south axis, is a criticalrequirement.

Electricity and power –performance and potential

Arunachal has a huge potential for thedevelopment of hydroelectric power becauseof its many rivers. The State has the potentialto supply a third of total hydroelectricrequirement of the country. Nevertheless, thispotential has so far remained untapped andArunachal is currently purchasing power andrelying on diesel-generating sets to meet itsenergy requirements.

The per capita consumption of electricity inArunachal was 86.9 kWh in 2001-2002against the all-India average of 335 kWh. Inrecent decades, electrification in rural areashas advanced rapidly; in 1971-72 only 37villages were electrified. The number ofelectrified villages rose to 340 by 1980-81and then to 1,308 by 1990-91 and to 2,506by March 2001. However, the coverage ofrural electrification varies widely among thedistricts, from 100 per cent in Tawang andTirap, to 34 per cent in East Kameng. There isa high percentage of transmission anddistribution losses and these losses haveincreased from 30 per cent in 1996-97 to 51per cent in 2000-2001. This is largely due tomismanagement and inefficiencies in thedistribution system.

The total installed capacity of the State hasincreased from 39.53 MW in 1994-95 to58.95 MW in 2000-2001. The share of diesel-generating sets, as a power source, hasincreased over the period, although itdeclined in 2000-2001. In 2000-2001, 46 percent of the power requirement was met fromdiesel-generating sets and the remaining 53.9per cent was met from hydel projects.

In view of the State’s fragile geologicalcomposition and the vulnerability of itsunique biodiversity (due to submergence bygiant hydropower stations), the immensepotential for harnessing hydroelectric powermust be managed carefully. Tailoring district-specific plans is a feasible arrangement, forexample, the improved design ofwaterwheels in Tawang or the use of impulseturbines using high head in the areas of UpperSiang, West Siang and West Kameng, areoptions that need to be explored.

Postal and telecommunicationservices

Telecommunication facilities (including postand telegraph offices) in Arunachal havesteadily grown over the years. In 2001, therewere 303 post offices in the State. There areseven telephone sub-divisions and 89telephone exchanges with a total capacity of51,732 connections. Mobile phones have alsobeen introduced in the State and a large partof Arunachal enjoys cellular connectivity.

46


Although the healthfacilities in Arunachalhave improvedsignificantly in the lastfour decades, there is amajor disparity betweenthe rural and urbanareas as most of thefacilities areconcentrated in theurban areas. Toillustrate, of the 16General and DistrictHospitals in 2000-2001,87.5 per cent werelocated in the urbanareas.

Banking and finance

Banking in Arunachal is comparatively new;the first branch of the State Bank of Indiawas opened in Pasighat (East Siang) as lateas 1971. In 2000-2001, there were 99 bankoffices with an average of 9.07 offices per100,000 population. However, the bankingsector/availability of finance is not widespreadin Arunachal yet. The credit-deposit ratio isonly 17.25 per cent, which is the lowestamong the States of North-East India, and isconsiderably lower than ratio at the nationallevel (58.53 per cent). The recovery rate inthe industrial sector is only 30 per cent,which is a cause for concern. It appears thatmost of the loans advanced by the banks areeither consumed or invested in unviableprojects.

Irrigation and water management

In Arunachal, only minor irrigation systemshave been developed through Stateparticipation and by providing variousincentives to farmers. The minor irrigationsystems covered a command area of nearly1,032 hectares in 1966-67 and this wasextended to 24,980 hectares in 2000-2001.According to the Arunachal PradeshAgricultural Census of 1990-91, only 21.5 percent of the gross cropped area in the Statewas irrigated; the highest proportion in EastSiang (38.98 per cent) and the lowest in WestKameng (1.96 per cent).

There is a need to develop indigenousirrigation systems which are cost-effective andsuitable to specific areas. The water and farmmanagement system of the Apatani Plateauis an example of an indigenous system ofresource management, which can bereplicated with suitable modifications toincrease income and livelihood opportunitiesacross the State.

Educational infrastructure

Educational infrastructure in Arunachal hasexpanded substantially. Schools at the primaryand middle level have increased manifoldduring the last 40 years, though this increaseis greater in the cases of secondary andhigher secondary schools.

Education institutions in the State nowaccommodate nearly 2 lakh students, ofwhich 73.6 per cent belong to the ScheduledTribes. The data shows that the gender ratioamong students at first increases from 787girls per 1,000 boys at the pre-primary levelto 830 girls at the primary level and then to903 girls at the middle school level. However,after middle school, a rapid drop is observedand the gender ratio at the secondary andtertiary levels falls drastically. There are only222 girls per 1,000 boys at the Universitylevel. There is thus a need to makeeducational institutions more accessible,particularly for girls at the higher educationlevel, and a need to motivate girls to continueto attend school.

Health infrastructure: large urban-rural gaps

Although the health facilities in Arunachalhave improved significantly in the last fourdecades, there is a major disparity betweenthe rural and urban areas as most of thefacilities are concentrated in the urban areas.To illustrate, of the 16 General and DistrictHospitals in 2000-2001, 87.5 per cent werelocated in the urban areas. The majority of therural population is served by the PHCs andsub-centres, which are located in block andcircle headquarters.

There is a need to decentralise the medicalfacilities in the rural areas, minimising thedistance between the villages and the PHCsand the sub-centres and raising the standardof these facilities. The effective use andmaintenance of expensive equipment, whichis lying unutilised in several hospitals are

47

SUMMARY

Educationalinfrastructure inArunachal has expandedsubstantially. Schools atthe primary and middlelevel have increasedmanifold during the last40 years, though thisincrease is greater in thecases of secondary andhigher secondaryschools.

additional issues that need to be addressedquickly.

Infrastructure facilities in thevillages surveyed

Around 31.58 per cent of the villagessurveyed by the SHDR team, were connectedby pucca road and 51.7 per cent by jeepableroad. Of all the villages surveyed, 23.31percent were situated at a distance of more than10 km from the pucca road and 9.32 per centare 10 km away from a jeepable road. Inmost of the surveyed villages (64.8 per cent),there is a primary school within the village.On the other hand, in 4.8 per cent of thevillages, children have to walk more than 10km to a primary school. Health services inrural areas are provided through sub-centres,PHCs, and hospitals. Only 15.38 per cent ofthe surveyed villages have a primary healthsub-centre within the village and in 25.28 percent of the surveyed villages, users have towalk more than 10 km to avail of the medicalservices of the primary health sub-centre.About 66.45 per cent of surveyed householdshad access to electricity. Around 70.47 percent of the surveyed villages had piped or tapwater as the dominant source of drinkingwater, 12.23 per cent reported using tube-wells, 3 per cent reported using wells, and14.3 per cent used other sources like springs.

Composite index of infrastructure -an inter-district analysis and itsrelation to the HDI

To examine the relationship betweeninfrastructure and human development at thedistrict level, a composite index ofinfrastructure for 2000-2001 is constructed

with the help of principal component analysisbased on a number of indicators14. Using thismethodology, Papum Pare and East Siangdistricts are categorised as ‘High’, whichimplies that they are relatively developed interms of infrastructure and two districts,Dibang Valley and East Kameng, wereclassified as ‘Low’. The regional disparity indexis estimated at 35.48.

The way forward

Although there has been a significantdevelopment of infrastructure facilities duringthe last 50 years (albeit starting from a verylow base), they are still inadequate and theinfrastructure in the State is less developedthan that of the country as a whole.

14 Including length of road/100 sq km, surfaced road as a percentage of total road length, percentage of villageshaving connectivity status of roads, percentage of villages having connectivity status of roads, percentage of grossirrigated area to total cropped area, percentage of electrified villages to total villages, no. of banks/10,000population, no. of banks/100 sq. km, credit deposit ratio, no. of schools/10,000 population, no. of schools/100 sq km,no. of health centres/hospitals, etc, no. of health centres/hospitals, etc/100 sq km, no. of medical technical personnel/10,000 population, no. of hospital beds/10,000 population, no. of hospital beds/10,000 population, no. of post andtelegraph offices/10,000 population, no. of post and telegraph offices/100 sq. km, no. of fair price shops andcooperative societies/10,0000 population, no. of fair price shops and cooperative societies/100 sq km, percentage ofvillages to total villages fully covered by drinking water supply.

Table 11

Classification of districts of Arunachal Pradesh byInfrastructure Development Index, 2000-2001

Category Name of the DistrictHigh 1. Papum Pare (4.96)

2. East Siang (4.04)

Medium High 1. Tawang (3.87)2. Tirap (3.66)3. Changlang (3.44)4. West Siang (3.01)

Medium Low 1. West Kameng (2.76)2. Lower Subansiri (2.56)3. Lohit (2.17)4. Upper Subansiri (2.16)5. Upper Siang (2.10)

Low 1. Dibang Valley (1.69)2. East Kameng (1.43)

48


According to the 1992-93 Centre forMonitoring the Indian Economy (CMIE)Infrastructure Index, Arunachal scored 44points with the all-India index at 100.

The following policy changes arerecommended for Arunachal:

• There is a wide gap between urban andrural areas and between the larger villages(in terms of population) and smallervillages. The first task of the Governmentshould be to increase the road connectivityof the districts that have a relatively lowHDI. The Government of Arunachal willhave to continue with high publicinvestment expenditure in theinfrastructure sector (particularly in theremote and inaccessible rural regions ofthe State). At the same time, privateinvestment particularly in the provisioningof education and health infrastructureneeds to be encouraged together withcommunity and local enterprise.

State planners shouldgive due attention totransmission anddistribution losses ofelectricity and establishproper institutionalfacilities which cansupport and makeinvestment effective.The Government needsto revive the communityspirit of the local peopleand redefine the privatesphere in thedevelopment process.

facilities which can support and makeinvestment effective. The Governmentneeds to revive the community spirit ofthe local people and redefine the privatesphere in the development process.

• Adequate attention needs to be given tothe provision of institutional infrastructure,especially of market institutions.

• On the programme design side, it isimperative to develop a ‘feedback loop’ inthe development strategy so that theappropriateness/relevance of the schemesis continually tested in the field andfeedback is generated in a systematicmanner, which can then be incorporatedback into the scheme/project/programme.

• Given the necessity of continuingGovernment interventions for thedevelopment of the State, convergencebetween departmental responsibilities hasto be emphasised to reduce the truncatedfunctioning at the cutting edge.

• Traditional water harvesting systems shouldbe revived and integrated with pipedwater supply so that the problem of

• A proper strategy of infrastructuredevelopment has to be framed, keeping inmind the special circumstances of eachdistrict. This strategy should ensure that theallocation of funds is directed towards thecreation and maintenance of infrastructurefacilities in the hill districts.

• State planners should give due attention totransmission and distribution losses ofelectricity and establish proper institutional

drinking water availability is addressed ina sustainable manner.

• In building of public utilities such asschools and hospitals, appropriatetechnology should be used. The PublicWorks Department (PWD), along with theNorth Eastern Regional Institute of Scienceand Technology (NERIST), should designand develop materials using locallyavailable materials for low-costconstruction.

• All developmental work should be subjectto a concurrent Government and socialaudit.

49

SUMMARY

Biodiversity conservation andsustainable development

Chapter 9

Marked by a remarkable range of topography,altitude, soil, rainfall and climate, Arunachal isone of the last bastions of diversity and anexceptional heritage. The remoteness andinsularity of this area, till very recently, hasbeen a contributing factor to the preservationof this legacy. Even today, access to largercentres of manufacturing and processingindustry, and to other forms of economicactivity, is difficult and constrained by anunderdeveloped road and transportationsystem. The links are tenuous and only coverthe main administrative centres of the State.A 100 years ago, the nature of the economyand of societal structures created neither theneed nor the incentive for large-scaleextraction of forest products. The mostimportant factor in the continued survival ofthe forests, however, has been the strongsense of community, the fact that theenvironment around the people has been ofutmost importance to them in their lives asa source of livelihood. In return, they haveprotected their environment, using what theyneed, and ensuring that it is available tothem and to future generations.

There is, therefore, a fundamental and strongbond between the people and theenvironment. However, this relationship has

given way in some areas to more settledforms of cultivation. Road networks havelinked the plains with the hills, and openedup impenetrable regions. In the fragile andrelatively young geological system of theEastern Himalayas, these have left scars onthe countryside; the roads will take manyyears to stabilise and the scars even moretime to heal. Equally significant, there istraditional knowledge of flora, fauna and theland and forests that is in danger of being lost.It is therefore imperative that this richstorehouse of knowledge and diversity beprotected and preserved.

The idea of sustainabledevelopment

Arunachal has to work out a strategy whichallows it to achieve high levels of humandevelopment; good education, access tomedical care and adequate income in aholistic and sustainable manner. Developmentthat does not bring into its almost pristineenvironments its inevitable accompaniments:

Arunachal has to workout a strategy whichallows it to achieve highlevels of humandevelopment; goodeducation, access tomedical care andadequate income in aholistic and sustainablemanner.

been severely tested in the last few decades.Population pressure has grown; given thewelcome fact of better healthcare and agrowing economy, these can only beexpected to continue to grow in theimmediate future. Swidden agriculture has

50


pollution, slums, congestion andenvironmental degradation.

The flora and fauna of Arunachal

Arunachal has all the vegetation types:tropical, sub-tropical, temperate and alpine.Arunachal is endowed with about a third ofthe 15,000 seed plants found in India,thousands of non-flowering plants and about500 exotic orchids. Many animal species arealso found here, including more than ahundred species of mammals in the forests.The forests are also rich in a wide variety ofmedicinal plants which have been used bythe people for centuries to cure variousdiseases starting from stomach ailments toblood pressure. Plant species (which are usedin house-building and in household materials)are abundant in the tropical and sub-tropicalzones.

However, much of the forest wealth of theState is undocumented. A comprehensiveBiodiversity Action Plan beginning with an

exhaustive listing of the important plant andanimal species of economic value, as well asendangered and rare species, is the first steptowards the conservation and sustainable useof this priceless heritage. The next stage is thedevelopment of appropriate technology,active community participation and anextension of the available livelihood optionsin a manner that is efficient and sustainable.

Agro-horticultural diversity

The people of Arunachal practise both shiftingand settled cultivation, and cultivate mainlyrice, maize and millets as major crops. Of thetotal geographical area of 8.37 millionhectares, the cultivated area is about 200,000hectares. Of this, in 1999-2000, jhum/shiftingcultivation is practiced in 110,000 hectaresand 90,000 hectares is under settledcultivation.

A wide diversity of crops is reflected in thetraditional jhum fields, where cereal, cropsand other food plants are grown. A largenumber of land races (economically usefulplant species confined to a particulargeographical area) and wild relatives ofcereals, legumes, fruits, oilseeds and otherplants are found in Arunachal.

Arunachal has all the vegetation types: tropical, sub-tropical, temperate andalpine. Arunachal is endowed with about a third of the 15,000 seed plantsfound in India, thousands of non-flowering plants and about 500 exoticorchids. Many animal species are also found here, including more than ahundred species of mammals in the forests.

Indigenous Knowledge Systems(IKS) and Intellectual PropertyRights (IPR) regime

The complete dependence of the tribalgroups on bioresources for their livelihoodhas helped them to use such resources moreefficiently. In order to enable scientificexploitation of some of this rich biodiversity(which may well be the key to Arunachal’sdevelopment), it is important to documentthis ethno-medicinal knowledge base of theethnic groups. Both the State’s biodiversityand its rich IKS are under threat due to theineffective existing IPR regime. TheGovernment has to ensure adequate

51

SUMMARY

protection to community rights over a widevariety of crops, useful plants and animalspecies as well as adequate protection for thetraditional knowledge base relating to the useof these life forms.

Major threats to the State’sbiodiversity

In recent years, the State’s rich biodiversityhas increasingly come under threat. Thehastening pace of developmental activities inthe last three decades and the improvementin the communication network has meantincreased access. Road building hasestablished communication but the blastingprocess involved has meant the loss ofvaluable habitat. The rapid monetisation of thebarter economies has led to increased tradein timber. A number of hydropower projects,the urbanisation process, and the shorteningof the jhum cycle have all put pressure onthe State’s bioresources, as typically occursduring the process of development. Biopiracyis another emerging threat.

Biodiversity conservation andsustainable development

Arunachal has a unique opportunity to mapout a development path that is sustainableand ecologically sound, a chance to developwithout the accompanying hazards that rapidand unplanned development have caused inmany other parts of the country. However, toachieve this, the State Government will haveto take the initiative. Keeping in view its richbioresources, region-specific developmentplans need to be drawn up to make the bestuse of local inputs, conditions and expertise.

Some of the areas that can be looked at are:

• Ecotourism, trekking, holidays, andspecialist vacations should be encouraged.This can generate employment andincome opportunities for Arunachal’speople.

• To reduce pressure on the forest cover,more areas of the State should be coveredunder plantation crops like tea, coffee andrubber. Simultaneously, efforts should bemade to establish food-processing facilitiesin the State; this should be set up on aPublic-Private Partnership basis.

• Joint Forest Management, especially in theregeneration of forests on degraded land,should be encouraged with equaldistribution of the benefits.

• The experience of the Apatani Valleywhere the empowerment andinvolvement of women’s bodies as majorstakeholders in the management ofbioresources has been extremelysuccessful, can be used to initiateprogrammes which designate women aspartners in the development process.

• The establishment of small-scale industriesbased on minor forest produce (e.g.bamboo) should be encouraged.

• The conservation and sustainableutilisation of medicinal plants and herbsthrough community participation isanother area that deserves attention.

• Resource mapping must constitute anintegral part of the biodiversityconservation strategy with a view toidentifying widespread species and thethreats to biological diversity.

• In view of the real threats to biodiversityby natural disasters, a State-specificDisaster Mitigation and Management Planis needed where resource planning,forward and backward linkages forprevention and precautions can bedetailed and effective forest and watermanagement practices can be dovetailedtogether.

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Rationale for measurement

One of the objectives of a State HDR is to show the States’ achievements in various dimensionsof human development.

The estimation of a relative position, based on more than one variable, requires the use of anindex. In the measurement of human development, gender disparity, human poverty, and otherindices for Arunachal Pradesh and its districts, the United Nations Development Programme(UNDP) methodology has been followed as far as possible.

Human Development Index (HDI)

This index is the arithmetic mean of indices of three variables: Life Expectancy at Birth (LEB),education, and income. A variable is transformed into its index as follows:

where ‘Actual value’ is the value of the variable included in the HDI; Minimum and Maximumvalues are its global Minimum and Maximum. The distance between the actual value of thevariable, and its global minimum, is divided by the global range of the variable yielding theindex, whose domain is all rational numbers in the unit interval, [0,1].

Indices of the three variables composing HDI are obtained as follows:

The highest Life Expectancy at Birth is taken to be 85, and the lowest, 25.

(b) Education index = 2/3 (literacy index) + 1/3 (Gross Enrolment Index)

For Arunachal Pradesh, the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) has been calculated for the agegroup 6-22.

Index =Actual value - Minimum value

Maximum value - Minimum value

(a) Life expectancy index =

Literacy index =Actual literacy rate – 0

100 – 0

Combined Gross Enrolment Index =Actual Gross Enrolment Ratio – 0

100 – 0

85 – 25

Actual life expectancy – 25

Technical Notes

53

SUMMARY

(c) Income (GDP) index. For per capita income for a district we take per capita DistrictDomestic Product (DDP). We use the data on DDP estimated by the Directorate of Economicsand Statistics, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, Itanagar. The maximum and minimum valuesare the maximum and minimum observed in the range.

where Y is DDP

While comparing Arunachal Pradesh with other States of India, the variables used are LifeExpectancy at Birth (with maximum value 85 and minimum value 25), adult literacy rate, grossenrolment ratio at primary and upper primary schools (with maximum value 100 and minimumvalue 0) and per capita Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) converted into purchasing powerparity (ppp) US$ (with maximum value 40,000 and minimum value 0).

Gender-related Development Index (GDI)

The GDI uses the same measures as the HDI, but, adjusts it downward to reflect the inequalitiesbetween men and women. The UNDP methodology for calculating the GDI has been used.

To calculate the equally distributed life expectancy index, we first calculate separate indicesfor female and male achievements in life expectancy using the formula:

For males, the highest value of Life Expectancy at Birth is taken to be 82.5 years, and lowest22.5 years. For females, the highest value of Life Expectancy at Birth is taken to be 87.5 years,and lowest 27.5 years. Next, the female and male indices are combined in a way thatpenalises differences in achievements between men and women. The equally distributed lifeexpectancy index is computed as follows:

Equally distributed life expectancy index = {Female population share (female lifeexpectancy index)-1 + male populationshare* (male life expectancy index)-1}-1

The literacy rate index and the enrolment rate index for males and females is calculated ina similar manner using a minimum value 0 and maximum value of 100. Literacy rate indexwith two-third weight and enrolment rate index with one-third weight are combined to

Y index =log (Actual value of Y) - log (10,000)

log (27,000) – log (10,000)

Life expectancy index for males =Actual value – 22.5

82.5 – 22.5

Life expectancy index for females =Actual value – 27.5

87.5 – 27.5

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Female share of wage bill (Sf) =

(Wf / W

m) EA

f

[(Wf / W

m) EA

f ]+ EA

m

,

Estimated female-earned income =S

f (Y)

Nf

calculate the education index for males and females. The equally distributed education indexis then computed as follows:

The equally distributed education index = {Female population share (female educationindex)-1+male population share (maleeducation index) -1}-1

To calculate the equally distributed income index, male and female-earned income isestimated. The share of female wage bill is estimated using the ratio of female agriculturalwage to male agricultural wage, which, according to the SHDR Survey, is 0.70.

where

Wf /W

m = Ratio of female to male agricultural wage

EAf = Female percentage share of economically active population

EAm

= Male percentage share of economically active population

The female and male-earned incomes are estimated by the following formula:

and

Estimated male-earned income = {Y- Sf (Y)}/ N

m

where

Y= Gross Domestic Product;

Nf = Female population and;

Nm

= Male population.

The next step is to calculate the income index for males and females separately. This iscalculated using the usual formula.

Equally distributed income index = {[Female population share (female income index)-1]+ [male population share (male income index) –1]}-1

The GDI is then calculated as the arithmetic mean of the three component indices – theequally distributed life expectancy index, the equally distributed education index, and theequally distributed income index.

55

SUMMARY

Human Poverty Index (HPI)

HPI includes deprivation in health, education, and overall economic provisioning. It is estimatedas:

HPI = [1/3 ( P1

3 + P

2 3

+

P

33) 1/

3] ,

where

P1 = Probability at birth of not surviving to age 40 (times 100),

P2 = Illiteracy rate in percentage,

P3

= (P31

+ P32

)/2, and

P31

= Percentage of people not using improved water supply,

P32

= Percentage of underweight children under five.

Infrastructural Development Index

To calculate the infrastructural development index for the districts of Arunachal Pradesh, wehave used the Principal Component Method. After arranging the districts in descending order,according to the composite index of infrastructure, the arithmetic mean (X) is taken, thusdividing the districts to above and below the arithmetic mean. Then arithmetic mean (X

i) is

taken for the districts falling above the mean. The districts falling within the highest value,and the arithmetic mean (X

i), are classified as ‘High’ and the districts between two arithmetic

means (X and Xi) as ‘Medium High’. The same procedure is followed for classifying districts

below the arithmetic mean as ‘Medium Low’ and ‘Low’ respectively.

A note on the State Human Development Report (SHDR)Survey

Since secondary data for some variables was not available, a large-scale survey was conductedto meet the data deficiency. A total of 5,257 households with 30,762 people, from the existing15 districts, were surveyed. The household, the unit of the sample, was defined in such a waythat it could capture the condition of the population. In Arunachal Pradesh, migrants fromother States of the country constitute around 34.78 per cent of the population. A significantproportion of these migrants, especially those who work in the interior areas, do not bringtheir families with them. This makes the proportion of the working age population higher inthe total population higher than that in the autochthonous (local) population. Since inter-statemigrants in Arunachal Pradesh are temporary, and their concentration is in areas with relativelylarge population sizes, giving equal weight to them in sampling, will make mortality and othermeasures unrepresentative of Arunachal Pradesh. In order to avoid this bias in the sample,the universe was defined as consisting of those households which are not single-memberhouseholds. A separate sample was taken from the single-member households in order tostudy poverty and other characteristics.

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The total sample was distributed among the districts according to the size of their population.The district population was then stratified into two categories, urban and rural. The samplewas divided between the urban and rural areas in proportion to the distribution of households.The next step was to further divide both the urban and rural areas. The urban areas weredivided into rich and poor sections, from each of which households were selected randomly.The distribution of the sample between the rich and poor urban areas was done on the basisof the relative size of the number of households in each category. In the rural areas, all circleswere stratified into different categories mainly on the basis of their accessibility. Efforts weremade to select the circles from the remote areas so as to get a representative picture of therural areas. Once the circles were selected, the next step was to select the villages. Theselection of the villages was based on accessibility, stressing the need to get properrepresentation of the inaccessible areas. In Arunachal Pradesh, the size of the village, especiallyin relatively inaccessible areas, is small – sometimes very small. In case of the small villages,all the households were selected, and, in case of the large villages, the sample was dividedbetween the rich and poor strata based on their relative size, and, from each stratum, 80 percent was selected.

The field investigators were trained so that they could collect accurate information. Structuredquestionnaires were constructed for the survey. In case of stock variables, the position on theday of survey was collected, but, in case of flow variables, the information of varying periodswas taken. The data on production, income, etc., were collected for the year preceding theday of survey. The mortality data was collected for the last four years, ending on the day ofsurvey. The overall quality of the data was good.

I am alarmed when I see — not only in this country but in other great countries too — howanxious people are to shape others according to their own image or likeness, and to imposeon them their particular way of living. We are welcome to our way of living, but why imposeit on others? This applies equally to national and international fields. In fact there would bemore peace in the world if people would desist from imposing their way of living on otherpeople and countries. I am not at all sure which is the better way of living, the tribal or ourown. In some respects I am quite certain theirs is better. Therefore it is grossly presumptuouson our part to approach them with an air of superiority, to tell them how to behave or whatto do and what not to do.


Development in various ways there has to be, such as communications, medical facilities,education and better agriculture. These avenues of development should however be pursuedwithin the broad framework of the following five fundamental principles:

1. People should develop along the lines of their own genius and we should avoid imposinganything on them. We should try to encourage in every way their own traditional artsand culture.

2. Tribal rights in land and forest should be respected.

3. We should try to train and build up a team of their own people to do the work ofadministration and development. Some technical personnel from outside will no doubtbe needed, especially in the beginning. But we should avoid introducing too manyoutsiders into tribal territory.

4. We should not over administer these areas or overwhelm them with a multiplicity ofschemes. We should rather work through and not in rivalry to their own social and culturalinstitutions.

5. We should judge results not by statistics or by the amount of money spent but by thequality of human character that is evolved.


Extracted from the Foreword to A Philosophy for NEFA, by Verrier Elwin, 2nd Edition, 1959

Arunachal Pradesh

Arunachal PradeshHuman Development Report2005

Arunachal Pradesh (Land of Dawn) is the largest State in North-East India. Home to 26 majortribes and 110 sub-tribes and minor tribes, Arunachal harbours a rich diversity of cultures.It is also one of the last reserves of exceptional biodiversity, which has been preserved forcenturies by its indigenous communities, aided by its remoteness and relative isolation.

With its abundant forests and rivers, the State has considerable potential for hydroelectricity,horticulture and floriculture, plantation agriculture, organic farming and food processing,medicinal plants and ecotourism. The challenge is to use appropriate technologies andprocesses that are environmentally sound and in keeping with the aspirations of the people;to create a truly sustainable development model.

The Arunachal Pradesh Human Development Report 2005 evaluates the progress made by theState in recent years and helps to recognise its unique characteristics and special requirements.

Hu

man

Develo

pm

ent R

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Human Development Report 2005 : Arunachal …...Arunachal Pradesh Human Development Report 2005...

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