Picture of discontent? A group of youngsters saunters down a market in Aizawl. A Telegraph picture;(below)A stagnant economy and unemployment have forced several youths to give up studies and start small enterprises

When the polling booths open their gates next Tuesday, a host of discontented first-time voters will queue up, armed with the power to change but unsure if their mandate will be able to usher it in.

Twenty-one years after the former Lushai Hills became Mizoram, attained through decades of armed struggle, young Mizos are disillusioned, bored, unsure about the prospect of choosing their own representatives.

Take 23-year-old Sharon, for instance.

A student of mass communication in Bangalore, Sharon is so disenchanted with the growing unemployment and lack of infrastructure in the state that he feels only a students’ government like the one portrayed in the Bollywood film Yuva is the answer to the decadence.

Sharon is from Aizawl South II constituency and has come home only to caste his vote.

“I am not excited about the elections. Whoever comes to power, it will be a similar kind of government. An old wine in a new bottle, perhaps. But I have to do my duty,” he said.

Lalruatchha Unga, a second-year student of Aizawl Government College, summed up the mood of his generation. “If statehood could not create adequate opportunities and bring about a qualitative change in the lives of its citizens, then it has become meaningless”.

“We have a separate state, so have the others. It is just a geographical boundary and a political identity without economic empowerment,” Unga said.

Realising the young generation’s yearning for change, a large number of youths have been given election tickets by various political parties. There are 20 candidates in their thirties contesting the elections this time.

Lalthanpuii, another voter from Aizawl South II constituency, however, did not see much promise in the growing number of young contestants.

“This 30+ generation are not youths in the real sense. Moreover, after getting elected, they will have to listen to their leaders,” she said.

Mizoram is undoubtedly the most peaceful state in the region.

Why are the youths then so disillusioned?

Zotea, another first-time voter, had the answer.

“With the kind of human resources available in Mizoram, if it were properly tapped and nurtured, we would have been the number one state in the country. But unfortunately, our elected representatives over the years could not guide the state with long-term vision and planning,” the college dropout said.

It was the poor job scenario in the state that forced Zotea to give up his studies mid-way and start his own business. “In my village, unemployment is a big problem. Youths are not getting jobs even with degrees. So I thought it is better to start a business,” he said.

“Mizoram needs universities and educational institutions with courses which will enable the youths to get jobs,” he added.

Saturation of jobs and growing disillusionment of the youths are the perfect ingredients for an uprising. Smaller tribes like Brus, Chakmas, Maras and Lais have already begun asserting their ethnic identities.

Against this backdrop, the Mizo political leadership can ill afford to keep its younger generation disenchanted for long.