Review: Living with Oil & Coal: Resource Politics & Militarization in Northeast India

Living with Oil & Coal: Resource Politics & Militarization in Northeast India by Dolly Kikon is an ethnography focused on the struggle for control over resource extraction in the foothill region between the Naga villages in the hills and the Assam villages in the plains. These foothills are a resource-rich hub over which the villagers, international corporations, and the Indian state are constantly jockeying to stake legitimate claim. The Naga hill villages enjoy state-sanctioned political autonomy and rights over the resources on their lands, while the Assam people in the plains have had the Indian government remain involved due to the oil deposits that exist there. In order to maximize profits, the Indian government has opened up the Assam land to oil exploration by international corporations, which has caused friction between the state and the public. As a result of these developments, a number of insurgent groups have formed to resist the state’s attempt to expand resource extraction. Consequently, the Indian state has granted the security forces who protect the resource extraction sites exemption from many national laws, even allowing them the use of deadly force on mere suspicion if they see fit. Kikon does a masterful job of illustrating the complexity of how the Naga and Assam people, who live together in the foothills, navigate the highly militarized borders created by both insurgents and security forces, develop cultural and political identities that are linked to land and resources, understand their aspiration for a better future through resource extraction, and form alliances with each other when needed to realize these aspirations.