It was late in the evening when T. Chongmei, a 32-year-old small-time mining contractor in Oting village in Nagaland’s Mon district, went in search of his missing relatives. It was December 4, and news had spread of civilians being killed in an Army operation gone horribly wrong. Chongmei had walked barely five kilometres when he got caught in a clash between soldiers and protesting civilians. Shot in the foot, he fell to the ground. And the rest of the evening became a throbbing blur.
Thirteen civilians were killed that day. The reason: commandos of the Army’s 21 Para Special Forces had waited in ambush for militants belonging to a banned faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang). They apparently mistook for militants a group of eight miners returning from work. According to the Army, the vehicle carrying the miners was signalled to stop, but it “tried to flee”. Six miners died after soldiers opened fire. More lives, including a soldier’s, were lost in the violent protests after the botched operation.
Chongmei is being treated at the district hospital in Mon. He is mourning the death of his friend Hokup Konyak, whose wedding he had attended a few days before. He said some of the injured people might never be able to work and support their families. “I earn around ₹400 a day working in the fields,” Chongmei said. “We are not like farmers in north or south India, where they grow crops throughout the year. We get work for 3-4 months, and live in uncertainty after that.”
Bu hikaye THE WEEK dergisinin December 19, 2021 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye THE WEEK dergisinin December 19, 2021 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?
IT IS ASKED, year after year, why Delhi’s air remains unbreathable despite several interventions to reduce pollution.
Trump and the crisis of liberalism
Although Donald Trump's election to a non-consecutive second term to the US presidency is not unprecedented—Grover Cleveland had done it in 1893—it is nevertheless a watershed moment.
Men eye the woman's purse
A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag.
When trees hold hands
A filmmaker explores the human-nature connect through the living root bridges
Ms Gee & Gen Z
The vibrant Anuja Chauhan and her daughter Nayantara on the generational gap in romance writing
Vikram Seth-a suitable man
Our golden boy of literature was the star attraction at the recent Shillong Literary Festival in mysterious Meghalaya.
Superman bites the dust
When my granddaughter Kim was about three, I often took her to play in a nearby park.
OLD MAN AND THE SEA
Meet G. Govinda Menon, the 102-year-old engineer who had a key role in surveying the Vizhinjam coast in the 1940s, assessing its potential for an international port
Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets
THE INDIAN STOCK MARKET has delivered a strong 11 per cent CAGR over the past decade, with positive returns for eight straight years.
Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay
AFTER A ROARING bull market over the past year, equity markets in the recent months have gone into a correction mode as FIIs go on a selling spree. Volatility has risen and investment returns are hurt.
