< PreviousIn acknowledging institutional support, I must recognize the Bodoland Territorial Council and my colleagues for their cooperation in enabling the articulation of policy reflections contained herein. Special mention is due to all the Executive Members and Members of the Council Legislative Assembly, officers and staff for their thoughtful engagement on regional policy matters and for consistently providing critical insights throughout my tenure as the Chief Executive Member. Their intellectual rigor and commitment to policy and administrative excellence significantly informed several of the chapters compiled in this volume. My gratitude extends to the custodians of Bodoland’s historical and philosophical legacy, notably the leaders of the educational institutions, civil society organizations, namely, the All Bodo Students Union, Bodo Sahitya Sabha, all member-organizations of the CCBTRO, as well as the family and friends and followers of Bodofa Upendra Nath Brahma. The narratives and activism they shared with me have been instrumental to me in developing a nuanced understanding of the cultural and ideological foundations upon which Bodoland has been built. These contributions greatly enriched not only a large part of this volume, but also a greater part of me as a person. Their scholarship and mentorship helped refine the theoretical underpinnings of chapters related to peacebuilding, harmonious co-existence, social development, and community visioning. Their influence has been both formative and enduring. I am grateful to journalistic platforms such as The Assam Tribune and The Eastern Chronicle whose editorial teams provided initial space for public engagement with ideas that have now been consolidated and expanded into this volume. Their editorial contributions ensured that each piece was articulated with precision, integrity, and contextual relevance. I am deeply indebted to Dr. Niketu Iralu for the gracious foreword that opens this volume. Your words captured the spirit of “looking within” better than I ever could, and set a tone of thoughtful reflection that I hope resonates with every reader. Your mentorship has been a gift; your belief in this project gave me the courage to transform speeches and articles into a cohesive narrative. Patricia Mukhim— my kong— a repository of courage, knowledge and compassion— I cannot thank you enough. I owe my peace and non-violence journey to the true Gandhian Natwar Thakkar Ji, Dr. Sunil Kaul, Dr. Samudra Gupta Kashyap, and Suresh Khatri Ji. You were there when I set forward my fledgling steps. Thank you. Ranjan Baruah, Chandi Basumatary, Adv. Sabda Ram Rabha, and my close associates whose names I mention not here, but writ’ large in my heart, I thank you sincerely. Social institutions such as the Gandhi Hindustani Sahitya Sabha, Initiatives of Change (IofC), and DISOM- the Leadership School among others played a critical role by seeding in me the power and the capacity to delve deep within me for answers. I remain indebted for their candour, academic rigor, spiritual depth and insightful questions that have launched me on a quest to look and see always deeper within. To my friends beyond Bodoland—across Assam, Northeast and whole of India—thank you for blessing me and offering new perspectives. The conversations we had helped me see my region as part of a larger tapestry. Your stories of cooperation, shared challenges, and common hopes enriched my understanding of Northeast India’s place in a changing world. This book is my humble ode to political possibility. It reflects the tensions, aspirations, and pathways that define public service in a multi-ethnic, post-conflict society. It affirms that leadership is not the privilege of the few but a responsibility shared by the many. The reflections herein are not prescriptions but provocations—to think, to dialogue, and to govern ethically. I thank every individual who believes that politics, when rooted in justice, humility, and vision, can indeed be a transformative force.The editorial and production support provided by the members of the Chief Executive Member’s Office, particularly, Dr. Victor Narzary, Shri Puspadhar Das and Dr. Geetartha Darshan Barua, all deserve special commendation. Their professionalism and meticulous attention to language, form, and structure helped sustain the nuance and emotional cadence of each reflection, making this work inclusive and linguistically resonant. I further extend my thanks to artists and photographers whose contributions elevated the visual and symbolic dimensions of the text. Maneswar Brahma and Bekheo Basumatary, in particular, succeeded in capturing the emotional and cultural contours of my reflective journey in Bodoland, thereby complementing the narrative with evocative imagery. Finally, I express my gratitude to all individuals—named and unnamed—whose encouragement, spoken and unspoken words, and quiet acts of kindness supported my endeavours all throughout. This book, though authored by one, is representative of many minds and voices that have collectively shaped the Bodoland vision. To the prospective reader, may this volume serve not merely as a compendium of reflections, but as an invitation to engage, to question, and to contribute to the building of a peaceful, resilient and equitable society. With profound respect and appreciation, Pramod BoroThe Bodo people have turned their most difficult struggle for their aspirations into the wider inclusive struggle by all the other communities for whom also Bodoland has become their homeland today. They have learned faster than their neighbours to be realistic and resilient in responding correctly and wisely to the inescapable complicated impacts coming from the changing world. The imaginative leadership that anticipates the emerging challenges thus being given, is watched closely by an increasing number of thinkers in the region deeply concerned for their respective situations. At the helm of this bold venture is Shri Pramod Boro, the Hon. CEM of the Government of the Bodoland Territorial Region. He and his committed team lead an unyielding struggle for human goodness, compassion, peace and proper growth for all who live in Bodoland. Pramod Boro's warm-hearted care constantly reaches out to every person, never leaving out the vulnerable and the marginalized who live in his homeland. His leadership is the kind of inspiration our region urgently needs. This inclusive idea now being boldly pioneered in what is now the BTR Government is indisputably the way the whole North- East will be able to grow together properly in mutual goodwill and cooperation, if they will choose to do so. The alternative to this challenging idea will be our North-East region bringing ourselves Foreword by niketu iralu.down inevitably in unmanageable "killing fields". This must never happen. As a Naga well wisher of the Bodoland Teritorial Region, I was privileged to be welcomed for visits to Bodoland during the past decades to work with and learn from fellow searchers for the same ideas. I express my sincere appreciation for the undeserved honour given to me to write the Foreword for this important and timely book. Thank you. "Lookin' Within : My Reflections" by Shri Pramod Boro, is an instantly intriguing and question-provoking book. It is a must- read for everyone who cares about the future and well-being of our North-East region. niketu iralu "Kerünyü Ki" Sechü-Zubza 797126 Kohima District Nagaland INDIA +91 94024 895141 Looking Within Locationing myself in an evolving world I. on Education: Hurdles and dreams I grew up to be an average student, myself, given the circumstances around me. Growing up in my ancestral village at Souraguri afforded me opportunities only as much. Growing up there meant being shaped by scarcity and enormous hardships. In the late 1990s, even as a teenager, I found myself standing at a point of multiple cross worlds: my days spanned engaging with quite a few contrasting realities of my life. I was someone navigating schooling, while also toiling away with the resilience of a farmer tilling muddy soil, ploughing with hope even when the rains forgot to fall. As the rooster crowed by dawn, I was already knee-deep in the fields, shouldering my family’s agricultural toil like the generations before me. By late morning, I switched roles, donning the garb of a student, hungrily seeking answers in the dog-eared books that came down to me passing through cohorts of previous students— some who had become successful and a few others who had already gone on in life as school drop-outs. And when the sun shone higher up and farther Westward, I transformed once again—this time into an activist with the All Bodo Students Union (ABSU), a foot soldier in a larger, burning quest for upliftment of marginalized voices, for our dignity and human rights. I was not unique in this; I was one among many, navigating a maze where each turn demanded a sacrifice. On joining the Rangia 16Chapter 1 College, I was appointed the Speaker of Kamrup District ABSU. Later I went on to become the President of the entire Kamrup District ABSU, shouldering greater weights of responsibilities with every passing day. In the midst of poverty and traditional social systems, schooling was tough. Going to college was even tougher. By the time I was in the High School, the education system had already failed an astounding number of my peers. The all-important rite of clearing the matric exams seemed to be a Herculean task given the prevalent biases, prejudices and aura of insurmountability created around it. The teacher failed to see the merit in students. The students were left in the lurch without the means to comprehend the skills and the know-how for clearing it with ease as was the case in other affluent parts of Assam. To top it all, we were with our baggage: familial responsibilities, attending to-do agenda of the ABSU in a movement or a mission mode pace, lack of adequate books, study materials and the like. Years earlier, the movement launched by the Bodo Sahitya Sabha (BSS) since its foundation in 1952 had finally led to the Chief Minister of Assam, Bimala Prasad Chaliha declaring, at Kokrajhar on 18 th May, 1963, the Bodo language as Medium of Instruction for the primary level. It was meant to be a celebration of our linguistic dignity. Today, we proudly observe the 18 th May as Bodo Medium Implementation Day each year. And yet, year after year, the very tools needed to honour this promise—correct textbooks, timely curriculum, sufficient materials—have eluded us like mirages in the desert. Till date. It is rather painful that our text books have never arrived on time, they have never been error-free, and when they arrived, they have always come in inadequate numbers. Back to 1990s, when I held the important portfolio as the President of the Kamrup district ABSU, we had the task of promoting better educational achievements among our students. It was during this 17Chapter 1 period that I found myself doing random visits on my bicycle to different schools to take stock of the situation. On one occasion, villagers welcomed me and my fellow-volunteers warmly and pointed to a school that had earned notoriety. Its matric pass percentage had been zero for three consecutive years. While that might shock a person new to our region, for us, it was a déjà vu. The villagers were filled with despair, their children were biting the dust year after year. It hit their dignity hard. It was an alarming situation there, even though, it was a regular phenomenon in the entire Bodoland region. On arrival at the school, we met the Head Teacher for a discussion. “Oh, these students are good for nothing,” was his first remark. “Our school does not receive good students. Hence, they fail year after year,” he defended, while other teachers who were present nodded in what seemed like a ‘total agreement’. That he was, in unison with other fellow-teachers, filled to the brim with pessimism was evident from our first interaction. None the less, we requested permission to interact with the students of Class Xth and IXth students. On entering the classrooms and interacting with them, I was happy and at the same time rather distraught. Every child in the class wanted to pass. They were however condemned to fail by their very own teachers. They had bright hopes of building careers for themselves. I could empathise that they also shouldered multiple responsibilities at home and in the society, like I had to in my earlier years. I, and my fellow ABSU volunteers were at our wits’ end. At that time, fortunately for us, the famous Bollywood movie “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge” starring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol was a soaring success, smashing one record after another. We took a cue from the movie. The protagonists Raj and Simran went for a kind of “summer school” across Europe. Though, it was filled with all the masala one could expect of a Bollywood, it led to self-discovery for them. That was what we were looking for and immediately intended to do: engage with the children, of our school 18Chapter 1 in discussion, for a journey of self-discovery to redeem their self- esteem, confidence and the capacity to overcome their obstacles for clearing the matric exams. When we approached the school head teacher, he acquiesced to our plan rather unwillingly, and with the look of I-know-this- adventurism-very-well-and-it-will-definitely-fail.Although romping across the European cities was a far-cry for us, we settled for a fortnight of summer school programme in the school itself. We summoned our best ABSU volunteers—students who were academically strong, but more importantly, emotionally grounded. Sessions were held in mathematics, science, and English—the most feared subjects. But equally important were the personality development segments. We talked about confidence, time management, teamwork, self-worth. We told them stories of real people from similar backgrounds who had carved out success. The results were stupendous by the standards. Seven cleared with second-division marks in the ensuing matric exams. None failed. We could have never wished for a better outcome! More importantly it taught us that it is possible. Teachers were surprised—some quietly took credit—but deep inside, they knew something had changed. It taught them an important lesson: never doubt the capacity of ones’ own students. I realised that such interventions were the need of the hour across the Bodo Medium schools. The teachers’ morale and the self- belief that their students were good enough to compete needed to be boosted. The students could shine when they were taken into confidence and provided with a little support. The communities could pursue their aspirations when their children did well in the schools. They needed to feel the comfort that their dreams were safe in classrooms, not strangled by them. This experience didn’t just transform those students—it strengthened me immensely. I saw firsthand what belief, even borrowed, could achieve. It taught me that students are not empty pots waiting to Next >