Assam's Tale of Witch-hunting and Indigeneity

In spite of the fact that at one point of time it was believed that globalisation would lead to a process of cultural homogenisation and reduction of difference, the local has actually resurfaced more strongly in the present. The perceived threat of globalisation and the failure of the state have led to ethnic mobilisation in the North East. This process of ethnification and the discourse of indigeneity have granted legitimacy to the inequalities that were very often embedded in traditional customs and practices. Witch-hunting practices of Assam force one to look more critically at some traditional practices that have been fostered by ethnification.