Gender and Political Participation: A field-based analysis in Arunachal Pradesh

Abstract

Arunachal Pradesh is situated in the north-eastern corner of India. The state is the largest among the north-eastern states in terms of its physical entity with sprawling area of over 83 thousand sq km. However, it “is a thinly populated hilly tract lying roughly between the latitude 26⁰ – 28 and 29⁰ -30 N and the longitude 91⁰ – 30 E and 91⁰ – 30 E on the north-east extremity of India.” It has a long international border, namely, with Bhutan in the west (160 km), and to the extreme north with Tibet and China (1030 km). It borders with two of the Indian states i.e. Assam in south (618.5 km) and Nagaland in south-east (58.6 km).

The state is mainly a mountainous territory which is conveniently divided into three district physiographic units. The first unit comprises the Kameng, Subansiri and Siang districts and partly of Lohit district which is an eastward extension and continuation of Bhutan Himalaya. The Tirap district, which is a part of Patkairange  and a link between Lohit Himalaya and Naga Hills of Nagaland, is designated as the second unit. The third physiographic unit is the fringe portion of eastern Assam plains, which include Siang and Lohit districts. The mountainous territory encompasses about 75000 square km¹. [1]