Pentecostal Groups in North-East India: Challenges & Opportunities

Introduction: Religion and Unrest in North-East India

With a population already exceeding 1.28 billion and growing every day, India is the second-most populous country in the world, and may outpace China's 1.38 billion people in the foreseeable future. Although nearly 80% of India's population — approximately 1.2 billion people — are practicing Hindus, several other major religions have significant representation in the country as well, including Islam, Christianity, and Sikhism.¹ Although India has a long tradition of religious tolerance, longstanding hostilities between Hindus and Muslims continue to create tensions in the hotly contested Kashmir region, and the potential for war between these two nuclear powers remains ever present.²

Taken together, it is clear that religion remains a powerful force in India today, but many minority religious groups face profound challenges in this country as well as significant opportunities for the future. Given that Pentecostalism is a vibrant form of Christianity with the potential to carry the Gospel to every country in the world, this paper examines the challenges and opportunities facing Pentecostal groups in North-East India today, followed by a summary of the research and important findings in the conclusion.

The Eight States: Ethnic Diversity and Socioeconomic Conditions

The eight states of North-East India — Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura — are all rich in culture and share a common geographical region. They are also all plagued by intermittent terrorism from a variety of sources as well as inter-ethnic conflicts. Beyond those broad commonalities, however, the similarities largely end. According to one authority, "The North-East consists of 40 million people spread over eight states that cover 263,000 square kilometers and none of them would agree to fight for the liberation of the 'Northeast' in general."³

North-East India has several natural frontiers with neighboring countries, all of which contribute to heightened regional tensions. The frequently hostile terrain, combined with "the multiplicity of insurgency activities, militants [and] terrorists [has] created havoc in the border areas."⁴ This regional unrest has been further exacerbated by at least 30 different separatist groups seeking autonomy or outright independence from the Indian federation, as well as "battles for territorial supremacy amongst the different ethnic groups themselves."⁵ This problem is especially pronounced given that approximately 400 tribal or sub-tribal groups and 160 Scheduled Tribes live side-by-side in North-East India. The strategic alliances forged between these groups frequently "transcend inter-state and international borders."⁶

This level of ethnic diversity is not limited to North-East India, but it is more highly pronounced in this region — a key factor fueling ongoing unrest. According to Pulla, besides the four traditional groups in the Indian caste system based on occupations (Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Sudra), there are also "two more marginalized caste groups, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, who are living outside the mainstream of the society because of their lower social status [which] adversely affects the equality of opportunities to the disadvantage of these groups."⁷ Caught in the middle of this ethnic, religious, political, and social unrest are millions of ordinary Indian citizens who want nothing more than to earn a living and improve the lives of their children. Earning a living in North-East India is itself a challenging enterprise, as many of the states suffer from impoverished conditions and a fundamental lack of employment opportunities.⁸

To its credit, the central Indian government has made significant investments in developmental projects throughout North-East India in recent years, but the outcomes have been mixed. Hussain emphasizes that "leakage of funds at various levels of the government machinery [means] development funds are making their way into the coffers of the insurgent groups."⁹ Other constraints have also undermined these efforts, including a lack of the requisite expertise and training needed to apply investment funds effectively.¹⁰

It is important to note, however, that the same level of unrest and insurgency does not exist equally throughout North-East India — some regions remain peaceful and increasingly prosperous. The characterization of the entire region as troubled has further complicated efforts to address the problems where they are most severe. As Hussain concludes, "It is very unfair to bracket all these North Eastern states as disturbed areas. This only proves lack of understanding of complex problems of the North Eastern region. It must be understood that no two states of North East are similar. In fact, each state has its own set of problems. They have been grouped as North Eastern region on geographical convenience only."¹¹