ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the changes in land relations in the northeast, and shows the new culture that grows as a result of alienation of tribal livelihood and the shortages it causes. It also shows that imposition of another culture on a traditional society is destructive of the community in general and of women in particular. The variety of land management systems, conflicts, their differential impact and possible alternatives can be better understood if one understands the stakeholders of the natural resources in general and of land in particular. The first stakeholder is the rural poor, especially tribal communities. The laws authorise the state to appropriate their resources without even paying compensation to their dependants. The law is a major cause of land loss and environmental degradation. The situation of the common property resources and other natural resource dependants has deteriorated with globalisation. The Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement of the World Trade Organisation and the Climate Change Protocol symbolise it.
