Paper short abstract:

This paper critically examines the emergence of detention camps in the northeast Indian state of Assam and the impact of detention based on the lived experiences of detainees.

Paper long abstract:

Since the nineteenth century, colonial establishments have utilized camps as facilities for the mass confinement of individuals whose freedom raised concerns, including prisoners of war and civilians. European and North American colonial administrations started employing detention camps to house civilian populations in the Global South, where they were actively involved in suppressing dissent, protests and ‘insurgencies.’ Since then, detention camps have become a significant tool for social and political control worldwide. In this context, postcolonial northeast Indian state of Assam's detention camps also serve the purpose of containing and segregating individuals considered ‘undesirable’ due to socio-cultural factors, specifically those labelled as the ‘Bangladeshi Other.’ At present, six district prisons in the state function as detention camps, housing thousands of suspected ‘illegal immigrants’ from Bangladesh, including children. Among these prisons, the Kokrajhar district prison is the sole facility designated for women and children. Despite the inauguration of a new "transit camp" in Goalpara district by the Assam government in January 2023, the six district prisons continue to detain suspected immigrants from Bangladesh. This paper critically examines the emergence of detention camps in the northeast Indian state of Assam and the impact of detention based on the lived experiences of detainees. In doing so, this paper brings in postcolonial concepts such as bare life, necropolitics, and carceral state.