CHENNAI, February 4 (Express Buzz): Utter lawlessness, continual war between two major tribes, unmitigated police high-handedness and easy availability of drugs are some of the reasons that impel Manipuris to pack off their children to places such as Chennai, in the hopes that their children will learn English and other languages and have a better future.
K Maharabi Singh, a member of Manipur’s Child Welfare Committee that is here to take back the 17 children from the northeastern state who were rescued from an unregistered home recently, told Express that kidnapping, extortion and killing were regular happenings in Imphal.
“How do you expect our children to attend schools if they are closed for months together due to bandhs and violence?” he asked and said that the education system in Manipur was in shambles. Only private schools provide proper education but they charge a fee of Rs 450 a month, which was unaffordable to most parents, Singh said.
Economically disadvantaged families have to send their children to government schools were the quality of education is poor, he added. The Manipuri team, which met with the Tamil Nadu Child Welfare Committee and other agencies, also said the health care system in Manipur was in very bad shape.
Most parents are apprehensive of their children falling prey to the drug culture in the state, which is a transit point for narcotics smuggled in from the Golden Triangle — Taiwan, Burma and China. Many youth are engaged in drug peddling and smuggling across the borders and many drug users are HIV positive. This concerns parents of young children, inducing them to send their children away to perceived safer places.

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