Jiten Yumnam, Development Aggression Rethinking India’s Neoliberal Development in Manipur, Yaol Publishing Limited, London, 2021
Reviewed by Khullakpham Ruqaiya
The book is a must read book for anyone who is interested in development politics in Manipur, one of the states in the north-eastern region of India. Manipur is known for conflict-prone situation due to multiple inter and intra-ethnic conflicts coupled with problems of insurgency and low economic growth. The Indian state after adopting the Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization policy in 1991 intensified the course for a neoliberal model of development. The trajectory of development that the postcolonial Indian state pursues is to bring security to its conflict-prone situation. However since three decades, the neoliberal agenda of development was best reflected in the formulation of the Look East Policy (LEP) rechristened as the Act East Policy (AEP) to realise the region’s strategic location and utilize its untapped resources by initiating development projects aimed for increasing connectivity with the neighbouring South East Asian nations. Therefore, a critical examination of the neoliberal developmental intervention and a study of its implications in the region are highly necessary and this enlightening book strikes at this juncture to explore and analyse the practices of development in the region.