Scindias Have Long Been ‘Wedded’ To The North East Growth Story — Jyotiraditya Is Taking The Legacy Forwards

North East India, apart from being an extremely beautiful region, also holds tremendous geopolitical significance for both India's regional security calculus and its global economic aspirations.

After the conclusion of the 2024 general election in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sworn in for a record third term. It came with a few changes in the cabinet, including for former Union Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia, who previously held the Ministry for Civil Aviation.

Prime Minister Modi reposed his trust in Scindia to help catalyse the development of the North East by appointing him as the Minister of Development of the North Eastern Region.

The Ministry is responsible for matters relating to the planning, execution, and monitoring of development schemes and projects in the North East region — Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura.

This region has a rich history. From Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa to the Ahom Kingdom, from Kangleipak to the tribal kingdom of Tripura, and from the Jaintia Kingdom, several kingdoms were established in this region that were ruled by various powerful dynasties.

The North Eastern Council (NEC), constituted in 1971 by an Act of Parliament, has come up with a document. The North Eastern Region Vision 2020 provides an overarching framework for the development of the North East to bring it on par with other developed regions.

Under this vision, different ministries, including the Ministry of Development of the North Eastern Region, have undertaken various initiatives.

Scindias And The North East

Jyotiraditya’s grandfather, Maharaja Jiwajirao M Scindia, was appointed the Rajpramukh of Madhya Bharat in an independent democratic India. He took several steps for the welfare of not just the people of his state but those of the North East too.

In the year 1950, an 8.6-magnitude earthquake, with its epicentre in Rima, a region in Tibet, caused massive devastation throughout the eastern part of Assam and its frontier regions — the Mishmi Hills and Abor Hills — which are situated in present-day Arunachal Pradesh.

Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru visited the affected areas and described what happened once the waters broke through the earthen dams created by the slides: "The remains of villages, animals, including cattle and elephants, and large quantities of timber floated down these raging waters (flood waters). Paddy fields were destroyed, stocks of grains were washed away, and some tea gardens also suffered great damage."

Shocked to learn about this disaster, the then Maharaja Jiwajirao, in his capacity as the Rajpramukh of Madhya Bharat, wrote a letter to Deputy Prime Minister of India Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in which he extended his help to the people of the North East.

He wrote, "I feel that it is the duty of every citizen of India to lend a helping hand to the suffering humanity who have unfortunately fallen victim to the wrath of nature. With this end in view, I have started a "Rajpramukh’s Assam Relief Fund” with my initial donation of Rs. 50,000/- (Rupees fifty thousand only) and have issued an appeal to 'the public of Madhya Bharat for generous donations to this philanthropic cause. I have also written personal letters to the rulers of the Covenanting States in Madhya Pradesh. I do hope to have a good response and shall remit the total donation thus collected to you in due course.”

This letter, dated 2 October 1950, is preserved in the National Archives of India.

Jiwajirao played an important role in promoting the culture of the North East in what is now Madhya Pradesh. For instance, Moni Bardhan and his dance group performed the Manipuri dance in Gwalior during his rule.

But the Maharaja went a step further. He encouraged the establishment of family ties with the North East, going against conservative and orthodox royal traditions.

His daughter, Padmavati Raje Scindia, a Maratha princess, married the Maharaja of Tripura, Kirit Bikram Kishore Deb Barman Manikya Bahadur.

The territories held by the Manikya Rajas reached their greatest extent during the sixteenth century, extending from the Hughli River in the west to Kamrup in the north.

The Tripura Castle in Shillong, Meghalaya, was built by Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya in the 1920s, and the first "heritage" hotel in the North East was opened here in 2003.

North East Took Flight Under Jyotiraditya

When Jyotiraditya Scindia was the Union Minister of Civil Aviation, he considerably improved the condition of this sector in the North East. Because of its mountainous terrain, the region especially needs civil aviation to catalyse its economic growth.

The Union government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given special emphasis to air connectivity in the north-eastern region. Between 2014 and 2022, seven airports were developed here.

Under the UDAN scheme, 14 per cent of routes have been awarded to the North East. Under UDAN 4.2, about 18 per cent of routes have been awarded to the North East.

A Rs 500 crore corpus has been dedicated to the air connectivity of the region. Under Krishi UDAN, 25 airports have been incentivised here. 

In 2022, Scindia inaugurated the operation of three flights connecting five cities in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, and Mizoram.

He also announced that under International UDAN, two new routes, Agartala-Chittagong-Agartala and Imphal-Mandalay-Imphal, will be operationalised. This move will expand the scope of air connectivity in the north-eastern states from the national to the international level. 

In 2024, the Government of Arunachal Pradesh clinched the coveted title of ‘Most Proactive State under RCS-UDAN-Priority Areas’ at the fourth edition of the Wings India Awards. The accolade was conferred by Scindia himself. 

The transition from the Look East Policy to the Act East Policy has opened new avenues for trade and collaboration, positioning the North East as a gateway to South East Asia. Enhanced connectivity and strategic collaborations have enabled the region to play a pivotal role in fostering regional integration and economic growth.

With the right initiatives, policies, and support, the region can achieve unprecedented levels of prosperity and development, making a significant contribution to India’s overall growth story.