Immigration Tales: The chinese assamese community of Assam

During the British rule, a group of Chinese labourers were forcibly brought to Assam to work in the burgeoning tea plantations. Over time a distinct community developed, that of the the Chinese Assamese, who have been struggling to revive their lost identity since the Indo-China War of 1962.

The Chinese Assamese community of Makum is dying. Image Source: Sentinel Assam

<p><br></p><p><br></p><p>The year 1837 was an important year. The first tea garden was established by the British at Chabua in Upper Assam (located between Tinsukia and Dibrugarh) and the rest, is history. India and tea has been inseparable since then. But there's a lesser known tale related to this historic event. Growing tea was not an easy task, especially for the native people who had hitherto no knowledge of its way of production. </p><p><br></p><p>The British solution to the problem was to bring in the original experts of the craft, the Chinese. So beginning in 1838, a large number of Chinese labourers were emigrated from their country to work at the new plantation in Assam. Many labourers found it a good opportunity to get out of their poverty ridden lives and earn a decent living. The Chinese were valued for their skilled masonry and other work so they began to dominate the new tea factories and mills that subsequently came up in Assam.</p><p><br></p><p>Eventually, the majority of these people concentrated in the region called "Makum", literally meaning "meeting point" as it lies between three important towns -Tinsukia, Digboi and Doomdooma. </p><p><br></p><blockquote>Over time, the Chinese adapted to the Assamese ways of life and settled here permanently. Many of them married native people and their children then carried the legacy of this unique blend of two ethnicities. The Assamese Chinese community lived in harmony with the wider group of people in and around Makum for many years. </blockquote><p><br></p><p>Independence came but a majority of these people remained in Assam, calling it their true home, while also retaining their Chinese roots. The China Patty or Chinatown that they developed in Makum became attractive centres of trade and festivities that reflected their respect for both Assamese and Chinese heritage.</p><p><br></p><p>But all this was to change and the peaceful abode of the Chinese Assamese was soon set to become a hell for them. For more than a century, this community had lived in Assam and earned the loyalty and friendship of the natives. But then came the tragedy of&nbsp;1962.</p><p>The Chinese invasion of India in&nbsp;1962, and the subsequently defeat of our nation is well documented. We know how many casualties we had to deal with and how Sino -Indian relations soured for ever after this historic event. But only a few people remember the tale of suffering endured by the Chinese Assamese community during the war. Immediately after the invasion, this minority community, comprising of around&nbsp;2000&nbsp;people who have been living as our own, began to be seen as enemies . The paths they earlier walked now became their death routes. They were hit with stones and blamed for the invasion and deaths of Indians. As if they weren't Indians themselves!</p><p><br></p><p><img src="https://cdn.thisday.app/media/uploads/deoli.jpg" alt="deoli.jpg"></p><p><br></p><p><em> Deoli Camp in Rajasthan detained Chinese people during the Indo-China War. Image Source: The Wire</em></p><p><br></p><blockquote>One of the elderly Assamese persons from Makum who had witnessed these unfortunate scenes, talked about how overnight, the friendliness and tolerance towards this community was replaced with outright hostility. Other witnesses mention how the Indian army rushed into Makum in the dead of the night and took the Chinese Assamese—old, young, men and women—and deported them to the Deoli Camp in Rajasthan for observation.</blockquote><p><br></p><p>Many of their properties were either auctioned off or destroyed. These included mills they owned as well as their houses. There used to exist a Chinese community school in Makum which had been converted to a Hindi medium school in&nbsp;1962.</p><p><br></p><p>When the war situation lost its intensity, many of the Chinese Assamese people were asked to return to China. A few of them remained, and fewer even returned to Makum and rebuilt their shattered community. Today, the population of the Chinese Assamese people in Makum has shrunk to a concerning size. Yet their problems are as big as ever.</p><p><br></p><p>They continue to feel unsafe in their own homes because they fear that any hostilities between the two countries might once again make them the enemy.&nbsp;They are aware that they are still treated as outsiders, and denied any state support despite their minority status. They lament their lost identity and struggle to keep their dual heritage alive.&nbsp;</p>

The Chinese community school of Makum was converted to a Hindi Medium school in 1962. Image Source: Scroll