An Institutional Analysis of Transition to Market: The Case of Shifting Cultivators in Mon,Nagaland

Shifting cultivation (or locally called Jhum) is widely practiced in Mon district of Nagaland. Health-wise, the district ranks among the best in the state. However, establishment of a rural market has been very inadequate despite various policies introduced by the state government to promote commercialization of agriculture. Policy makers often blame the lack of infrastructure as the main deterring factor. Interestingly, such ‘mainstream’ arguments miss the roles of social norms and historical trajectory of the communities in accepting the logic of ‘market’. Drawing upon the conceptual framework of institutional and evolutionary economics for our analysis, we intend to offer an institutional view to understand the problems of establishing a market in rural areas of Nagaland based on a field survey of six villages in Mon district of Nagaland. We argue that the logic of a market is based on individualistic values and rights, while their existing system of governance–production and education focuses on collective rights and patronage, making transition to market difficult. We propose that a smooth and effective transition to market would depend very much on the way interdependent system of governance–production and education can be altered. Only relying on short-term incentives may prove to be ineffective to ensure such a transition.