Of Blessings and Banes

Abstract

Lakhipathar in Assam is defined as a margin due to both its lack of ‘order’ or ‘normalcy’ and its precarious physical location at the edges of the proclaimed territories of India. It is this unruly margin where the rebel organization ULFA fighting for Assam’s secession had its central head quarters. With the intention to introduce the field-site to the readers, here I discuss the socio-historical and geographical cultural background of the ULFA camp in Lakhipathar and go on to discuss how the media reported the first moment of conflict between the state and ULFA in Lakhipathar. I also discuss briefly the field-work anxieties of a researcher. The chapter draws on memory based oral narratives and personal observations in the field, archival sources, literary works, and newspapers of the time.