Witoubou Newmai
High-octane campaigns to ‘address’ the hill-valley divide have been the hallmark of the first year of the Biren Singh Government in Manipur. The Government celebrated its first anniversary on March 15.
Under the ‘Go to Hills’ slogan of the State Government, the Chief Minister and his ministers visited several places in the hill districts of Manipur and announced attractive economic/welfare packages. In the initial stage, the hill people saw some charms in this ‘Go to Hills’ campaign.
After this much hyped bonhomie and geniality, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh had said recently that after ‘Go to Hills’ campaign, his government is “set to launch another campaign known as ‘Khunggangda Chatlo’ (Go to Rural Areas) from the first part of May this year.”
However, the execution part of the Biren Singh campaign has become a matter of concern. The State Government seemed to have bitten more than it can chew.
Now, a track record of one year is enough material to confirm what the Biren Singh Government is actually up to. It is time to ask whether the Biren Singh Government’s campaign has been an exercise just to sedate the ‘situation.’
To a certain extent, the ‘Go to Hills’ campaign and announcements of hefty packages by the Biren Singh Government have lulled ‘unrest,’ especially in the hill districts.
Is this campaign of the Biren Singh Government another smokescreen policy in different avatar? The adhoc policies of successive governments of Manipur State have said a similar tale.
It is time for the people to reason together if we are to address the issues confronting the State. The people need to start engaging in critical inquiry, asking what is attributing to the regressive affairs in Manipur State.
Manipur “remains trapped in time” as “the distinction between heroes and villains” is increasingly murky, in the words of award-winning journalist, Anubha Bhonsle, who captures the state of affairs of Manipur succinctly in her book, ‘Mother, Where’s My Country?’ More relevant is the sub title of the book which states, ‘Looking for light in the darkness of Manipur.’
As it appears now, Manipur will continue to witness everyday tragedies. The hefty welfare schemes announced by Biren Singh in the hill districts during his tour last year continue to remain only on paper. The State Government also seems to be going back on its commitments and assurances. The clear case has been the district creation issue.
A couple of weeks after coming to power last year, the Nagas in the South found some charms in the Biren Singh Government, when the latter admitted during the first tripartite talks, March 19, 2017, on the district creation issue that, “the grievances of the United Naga Council which led to the imposition of the economic blockade by them was recognized as there was non-adherence to the four Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and the Government of India’s assurance on the matter.” A year down the line the Naga people have started realizing that the same old dealings of successive Manipur governments persist.
The Biren Singh Government, if it really is for a genuine purpose, cannot afford to ignore the chord that promotes the same in practicality.
