ABSTRACT
Assam has seen the reorganisation of its political and territorial boundaries since the British annexation following the treaty of Yandabo in 1826. After attaining independence (1947), the first experience of reorganisation was the Sylhet memorandum through which the Bengali-dominated district was transferred to the then East Pakistan. Under the scheme of the reorganisation of the states (1956), Assam was left out to retain its then existing political and territorial boundaries. North-Eastern Areas (Reorganization) Act, 1971 was implemented following Indira Gandhi’s declaration in 1969. This reorganisation triggered further balkanisation of the state.
The objective of the chapter is to understand this long political trajectory of Assam, focusing on the historical roots and geopolitical and other consequences of the reorganisation of Assam since 1947.
