The present study is to examine evolution of the public health during nineteenth and
twentieth century as part of colonial expansion and consolidation of power and spread
of recurrent epidemics such as cholera, malaria, small-pox, kala-azar and plague took
huge toll of mortality of both Europeans and natives in Northeastern province. It had
affected the social, political and economic order of colonial state. Under such
circumstances, health policies were evolved, implemented and stand as a tool for
British. With western medical interventions evolved new practices and new ideals to
control epidemics diseases which need to be understand as a part of exploratory and
regulatory mechanism of colonial rule. To keep in mind the complex nature of
colonial mechanism, the present study explores how colonial interests led to expand
the purview of public health policies and practices from colonial enclaves to general
public during nineteenth and early twentieth century's in Northeast India.
Colonial expansion and consolidation in Northeast frontier witnessed several
epidemic diseases. Frequent outbreak of epidemics in their process of expansion and
conquest led to devastating impact on European army and the lives of the population
and took heavy toll of population. Among all the epidemics encountered, the most
devastating diseases were cholera, kala-azar, small-pox and malaria. Cholera, a
dreaded disease appeared frequently since 1820s. It swept the lives of the plain
population in Tippera, Manipur, Dacca, Sylhet and in Assam. At an average until
1920s, more than twenty thousand lives were carried off by cholera in every five
years. Another disease, Kala-azar, also known as 'Assam Fever' had also swept the
lives of the populace since 1880s.
