Two days from now, Arunachal Pradesh  will be celebrating  a very special day. It is going to be the 33rd year of our existence as a state.  Like every previous year, this day will also be something  extraordinary in the life of every Arunachalee. 

Standing at the threshold of the approaching anniversary celebrations with preparations in full swing, our minds feel the urge to have a glimpse of our past which defined what we are today and the road ahead of us to tread. 

Arunachal, prior to becoming a full-fledged state on February 20, 1987, from 1954 to 1972 was known as the North- East Frontier Agency (NEFA).And with the gaining of Union Territory status on January 20, 1972 it was renamed as Arunachal Pradesh.1975 was a watershed year for us because the Pradesh Council was converted into a Provisional Legislative Assembly and a council of ministers was appointed for Arunachal Pradesh. Consequently, with the passing of the Constitution 55th Amendment Act, we finally attained the full political status on 20 February, 1987.

 

If that is the political history of our march to statehood which has provided the desired administrative mechanism for achieving sustained development, it is a fact which cannot be overlooked that establishment of institutional infrastructure in a hilly and sparsely populated land like us  has  always been  a monumental task. 33 years , by any standard cannot be termed a very long phase.We had dreams galore, some fulfilled and some in the process of taking shape. 

The list is a long one when we calculate of what we are devoid of. From labelled as only Northeast sister of not having a civilian airport, poor road connectivity, penchant for bandhs and chaos etc, the anecdotes are perhaps endless. These give us long faces, no doubt. 

But at the same time we held our  heads  a little high when the rest of India and world confess of our upholding of extraordinary spirit of national integration. Even the most ardent of the critics will have no option but to admit that it is but for the people of Arunachal Pradesh, the site of a bitter Indo-China war in 1962, the entire Northeast is still a part of our country. Otherwise we would have different geography and history books in our syllabi. 

Again , when terrorism seems to be the evolving new normal in various parts of the country latest being the grotesque Pulwama attack and for reasons whatsoever, we in Arunachal, like a strict martinet have issued a no-entry board which is worth imitating. 

We may be non-starters in many ways, but not in the process of serious rethinking, remodelling and reshaping our development discourse. Hopefully, the aura of this sacred  day injects in us the unfailing commitment to zoom ahead and make good the loss of the hours wasted.