Mizoram’s rat story (true incident )
Khushwant Singh in his autobiography wrote an amusing incident. He was posted in UNESCO, Paris office some time in mid fifties of last century. A godown of grains belonging to UNESCO, situated over one of the labyrinth of network of underground sewerage line. Office staff were worried about report of heavy loss of grain due to excess of rats coming from underground sewer line. So after brainstorming, they brought few cats to tackle the menace. Initial result was very encouraging as cats had sumptuous meal by eating those rats. After few months number of rats got dwindled but by the time cats propagate their progeny. So in absence of rats, cats eye fell on the stored grains and by the year end grain loss become much more.
In my leisure time for finding the ‘root cause analysis’ (a pet word coinage in my electrical maintenance exercise to find out the original cause of the fault)
of the recent border dispute between the ‘big brother’ Assam with one of its little ‘seven sisters’ Mizoram, I came across a interesting anecdote much similar to Khushwant Singh’s story. This is one of the main reason of more than twenty years rebellious activity by Mizo insurgents, starting in 1962, which finally led to ‘Assam accord’ in 1986, followed by formation of a new state of Mizoram.
The hills of Mizoram are rich with dense forest of Bamboo trees. The trees bear flowers in every 48-50 years. Over hundreds of year, these flowers brought misery to local people in the form death, destruction. The bamboo flower brings with it hordes of rodents, bugs and locusts and rats, which multiply after eating the nutritious bamboo fruit. The fruit from this plant has a 50 per cent starch content which serves to increase the reproductive capabilities of rats that feed on it.Subsequent to increase in number of rats and bamboo flowers in wane, the rats thrive on eating grains from paddy fields. such is the calamity of loss of harvest that the state population has to face widespread famine. This phenomenon locally known as ‘Mautam’.
Records from the British Raj indicate that Mizoram suffered famine in 1862 and again in 1911, after the region witnessed similar bamboo flowering. The 1958–59 Mautam resulted in the recorded deaths of at least 100 people, besides heavy loss to human property and crops. It is believed, that the famine and death could have been avoided, had Assam Government ( those days, Mizoram was part of Assam) pay heed to the advance warning given by the village older, based on their acquired knowledge from forefathers. It is said that, Assam Govt finally announced forty paise for killing each rat, which led to killing of two million rats.
During the 1959 famine, a young former Mizo havildar of Indian army, went to deep interior of Mizoram as a aid worker and moved by the misery of local people. His name was Laldenga. He formed a group named ‘Mizo National Famine front’. This subsequently renamed as Mizo National Front and for next quarter of a century fought Guerrilla war with Indian force for getting independence of Mizoram. Before formation of Bangladesh in 1971, MNF members used to take shelter in Chittagong hill tracts to get combat training and equip them with arms. After foramation. of new country, the insurgents were refused to enter Bangladesh and the rebels temporarily took shelter in Mayanmar. The fight went on and in 1972 Mizoram given status of ‘Union Teritory’. Finally Mizo rebels forced to enter into a peace treaty with Govt of India during prime minister Rajib Gandhi’s tenure and a new state Mizoram formed in 1987. So the strange fact of rat led famine which become the genesis of Mizoram gaining statehood.
Debadattaray
Date 03/08/21
Galwan valley clash and border dispute with China has become a sensational topic of news and TV debate for more than a year with present round 12 meeting between the two nations to iron out border disputes. However the media coverage and press briefing by Government agency adopt a hush hush business on the news of six Assam police personnel got killed and fifty got injured in a border dispute between Assam and Mizoram. International border disputes are common, but a state border dispute amounting to loss of life is rare, even though the incident failed to grab the due media coverage. More drama unfolded when Mizoram police issued arrest warrant for Assam CM.
My idea is to write this article to dig the genesis of the problem and to reveal that this incident has not happened on a spur of the moment but culmination of a historical dispute. This history is also laced with a bit unusual but very interesting natural phenomenon of balancing act of nature which I already narrated.
The area of Mizoram was known as Lusai hill, inhabited by as many as eleven tribes. In local language ‘Mizo’ means ‘the people who live in hills’ and Ram stands for ‘area’. It is a tiny state of population 13 Lacs, when compared the neighbouring big brother Assam having population of 3.5 crore. Mizoram is strategically located, sharing international border with Myanmar, Bangladesh and internally also with Tripura and lower Assam sharing a stretch of 165 km border line.
In second and third quarter of 19th century, British tea plantation started proliferating in Barak valley, a part of lower Assam consisting three districts, Highlakandi, Kachhar and Karimganj. Tea gardens, encroached some part of Lusai which led to border conflict. That time Mizoram was a part of Assam. The dispute stems from a notification of 1875 that differentiated the Lushai Hills from the plains of Cachar, and another of 1933, that demarcates a boundary between the Lushai Hills and Manipur.
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