Over the past few years, there have been calls for the non-Manipuri and migrant population living and working in the state to head back to their own native places. Those who give these calls say that their increasing numbers are a threat to the social culture and identity of the ‘original’ people of the state and express their fear that the ‘outsiders’ will fast outnumber the ‘insiders’. Some point out to the socio-political history of Tripura where the indigenous Tripuris have in the course of time been relegated to the status of a minority people, swamped by the more numerous Bengali and other communities. The ‘threat’ of the outsiders have taken various forms and in its resulting response, seen its at times violent rendition. Much before groups and organizations started talking about the politics of the outsider versus the insider, various armed groups have taken ‘drives’ to oust them from the state by serving diktats to leave and even resorting to killing some of the more unfortunate ones in Manipur.

The irony of such fears of being closeted and being snuffed out economically, socially and by extension politically reaching out to identity issues is that the majority of the migrant population in Manipur are the poorest section who do not have the resources or the leverage to subvert the majority indigenous or local population of the state into a minority one. They are the ones who rather venture into certain work openings that the majority indigenous population, hold beneath them to take up. A look around Manipur’s economic hub, which lies in the Paona bazaar area but more so, in the area in and around Thangal Bazaar will bring clarity here. There is a dearth of local faces among those who stitch torn shoes and bags, among those who carry heavy loads or pull thelas, among those who load and unloaded good laden trucks. Outside of the bazaar areas and in the domain of our homes too, the majority of people agree that the handiwork of masons and building overseers including plumbing are best done by the non- migrant people. While small scale industries like bakeries and sweet shops are mostly staffed by the ‘outsiders’, the ones who run mobile ‘juice’ trolleys and selling gas balloons or who sell popcorn or assorted knick knacks are all non migrants. Theirs is a story of enterprise and finding ways to eke a living.

Unfortunately, the sheer number of this population makes them stand out while the ones who really have a say in the economy and even political decisions of the state incidentally happen to be a minuscule section of ‘outsiders’ who have come to be accepted as citizens of the state. They are the ones who remain as dealers of various consumer products and commodities and who control a majority of the economic transactions of the state. The unexpressed truth is that it is the pull of this select few of Non Manipuris that is really the crux of the matter. But because they have the finances, the obvious corollary also is that they would have the power of money and by that same extension, have the clout over political forces and decisions to be protected and to protect various players and stakeholders of the state. This certainly explains why no diktats or calls for ‘no entry to outsiders’ really touches this group and why it is the migrant population at the bottom rung who have to head back to their native states when diktats come calling.

The non migrant labor force thrives in the state because the locals are not either up to doing the kind of work they do or are not ready to take up the kind of work the ‘outsiders’ take up. The day, a working class of locals step in to the areas that are yet to see their entrance, there will be more competition and perhaps a tendency to call for local labor force in case the quality of the work output is at par with each other. Instead of targeting this section of people for providing services that we cannot do without, it would be more practical to inculcate a sense of dignity for labor among our own ‘local’ population. It would also not help the ‘insiders’ to reclaim the control of finances or power play at all by venting out the ‘outsiders, go back’ stand to this section for they are at best caught between the pressures of coping as a ‘minority’ group negotiating their existence and work spaces with even the rates of their services decided by various ‘social groups’ and then having to eke out their existence. The story of their trails and tribulations are not often told and shared but certainly needs to be acknowledged. It also needs to be remembered that the stories of migrating work forces coping in the backyard of ‘the others’ is similar across states, regions and countries. They are needed and welcome as long as they lie in the shadows and working away for the comfort of the ‘locals’. But the moment, they prosper and get seen in circles of power, they are resented and unwanted.

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60 years ago on May 19; Edmund Hillary, a New Zealander and Tenzing Norgay, a Nepali Sherpa of Indian citizenship made the news for having successfully climbed on top of Mount Everest, the highest elevated mountain from sea level in the world. The romance in the conquest of Everest perhaps stems from the trail of people who have lost their lives starting from the point when the British began the Great Trigonometric Survey of India to determine the location and names of the world`s highest mountains in 1802. The survey team ended in two casualties and one survey officer giving up due to poor health even before reaching anywhere to the Chomolungma which would later come to be known as Everest. This was to be the precursor of various efforts to map the mountains in the region of the Himalayas and measure their heights till an Indian mathematician and surveyor from Bengal Radhanath Sikdar using trigonometric calculations based on earlier measurements became the first person to officially identify Everest as the highest mountain in 1852. ‘Chomolungma’, the Tibetan name for the mountain was unknown to the British since Nepal was a closed down to the British.  Named merely as Peak XV, it was to be in honor of Sir George Everest a former British Surveyor General of India. What underlies the history of the peak is in fact the documentation of a colonial rule and one cannot help but wonder over whether the people living with the mountain in their midst would not ever have set their feet on it and come back to tell the tale.

29 years before the pair of Hillary and Norgay set foot on the summit, 37 year old George Mallory was part of three British expeditions with the last one being the most poignant and controversial down the line. George Mallory and his partner Andrew Irvine made an attempt on the summit via the North Col/North Ridge/Northeast Ridge route from which they never returned.  Later, the Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition found Mallory`s body on the North Face in a snow basin setting off talks of whether it would have been possible for either Mallory or Irvine or both to have reached the summit. Juxtaposed between man’s romantic notions of venturing to the unknown and the mystery of the elements, Irving’s and Mallory’s story will never be clear. What is clear however is that since the early phases when the Everest was still out of bounds to the majority, the equation of heading to the summit has changed and how. Consider the statistics that says that about 300 people have made it to the top till May this year! This is not to say that the element of danger does not enter into the picture for an equal number of people have died while trying to reach the highest point on earth in the last six decades. This year too, seven climbers have died while attempting their ascent and descent from the peak.

Over the years, there have been other categorizations while attempting the peak: climbing without oxygen, climbing the maximum number of times, being the youngest or oldest climber, fastest to reach the peak et el. The traffic and the rush for the peak has reached a stage where tour like corporate expeditions have become an accepted norm with money being the first criteria considering that permissions for the climb means forking out a considerable fee. Earlier in this year’s season of fair weather climbing, a fight broke out between three European climbers and Nepalese guides. Many environmentalists have expressed their concern over the possibility of Everest becoming the world’s highest garbage dump with waste materials being discarded on the peak. An unfortunate fallout of the race to the top emerged in 2006 when a group of climbers found a lone climber who was taking shelter under a rock a mere 450 metres (1,480 ft) below the summit but did not stop to rescue him. But again, the human race is also about basic emotions of greed, selfishness and personal perseverance. For some being on top of the world would be their ultimate even if it means having to leave someone to die in the biting cold and the unforgiving altitude. For some, it would mean having to beat great personal odds and overcoming physical disability to set a milestone. And for Nepal, a country with not much potential for industrial growth, the trekking circuit in the Himalayas would only mean a major revenue earner with Everest being the top of the list. A whole economy thrives on the madness of adventure and gives economic sustenance to porters and guides. The romance sadly died a long time ago.

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The results of the High School Leaving Certificate Examinations have shown yet again that Catholic schools are not yet ready to be over ranked by Government schools. The spoils were snapped up by two mission girls only school: Nirmalabas with 13 top ranking students and Little Flower School with 13 ranks out of the top 25 ranks. Given earlier track records where Government schools have not been able to stake a claim the top spots, the presence of a Government model school does say something about the extra efforts being put into such initiatives. Earlier too, the lone Government model school in Imphal West had managed to stay on the top rankings. Clearly, this means that where there is political will and where there is a strategic implementation and planning, starting from the process of recruiting teachers to maintaining the quality of teaching, Government schools can indeed improve. Therein comes the question of why the working nature and the value that exists in Government model schools are not being replicated in every Government schools. If the Education Department is serious about being in a competition with private and mission schools, it would have to act soon and upscale the quality of all Government schools and not just confine its attention on the few model schools. In any case, a certain section of the population do hold the view that private and mission schools are elitist and cater to only those who can afford them. If the Government were to give its due attention to a few model schools, it would be equally suspect of playing choose and deliver while ignoring the larger majority. It would also be a tacit acceptance that it knows the quality of government schools and its teaching can improve but give the signal that it is not ready to go for the big change.

And no, the rankings in examinations can be no benchmark for the levels of education. Rather, there are now efforts in the country to out in a grading system rather than a marking system starting from high school examinations but compared with the education systems followed in other countries, the Indian system lacks in imagination and concentrates itself on academic excellence and has no elements of practical application. Which is why sports is frowned upon during high school. In Manipur too, where we all lap up the ‘sports loving people’ tag, not much action or support system exists in the school set up. In fact, while talking to IFP following Nameirakpam Chingkheinganba’s conquest over Mount Everest, his father Tomba let in that his son had to change his school after his 8th standard as his earlier alma matter did not take his leave taking for his various trekking expeditions too kindly. This means that schools give the total priority on academic excellence and has no room for other talent nurturing. Contrast this with other countries or even other states where students are given leave for co-curricular activities and then given extra classes and special attention once they return to school. Compare this also to some very interesting initiatives for college students who have shown creativity and ingenuity to actually drop out from college and pursue their dreams of taking up projects, making films, forge community linkages etc.

Even when the main focus is on academic performance, the social and political environment in Manipur does not even support that line of approach. The occurrence of bands and blockades at the drop of a hat in fact comes in the way of the school syllabus being affected. A factor that students have gone on record as saying affects the environment of education. With a host of state holidays and the very popular habit of various civil society groups to herd out students from classes on to the streets to take part in various rallies and agitations, the number of school working days takes a steep nosedive. An NCERT study showed that only half the states have adopted the National Curriculum Framework (NCF), which has resulted in variations in number of working days, time allotted for teaching subjects like mathematics and science and evaluation of learning levels. That study stated that Manipur only had 160 working school days with Bihar and Jharkhand clocking 253 days. Clearly, the education sector in the state needs to be streamlined which is not an impossible task. All it would entail is a clear strategy on whether education is to be only of academia or to be inclusive of co-curricular activities and to scale up the quality of teaching that exists in Government schools so that it is not just a section of the student population that gets the best out of the schooling system but ensure that every student has the right to an all round quality education.

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The International AIDS Candlelight Memorial is observed on every third Sunday in the month of May. Started in 1983, the global observation has over the years emerged as the largest grassroots initiative for HIV awareness in the world with coalitions of communities affected by/living with HIV and AIDS, service providers and various organizations joining in to put the spotlight on the fight against HIV and AIDS. The advent of the observation is significant for the 80’s was a period wherein there was a marked ignorance about HIV and AIDS and a great sense of fear. These twin factors contributed to stigma and discrimination to people living with HIV/AIDS or those at risk of it. For a long time, HIV/AIDS was considered to be confined only to homosexuals even in Western countries. Slowly, it would emerge that there would was no specific section of the population that HIV/AIDS would be confined to. And because it touched upon the lives of socially high profile people including celebrities in the form of fashion icons and designers, sportspersons and performing artistes, a sub culture of talking about HIV/AIDS and taking it to the public domain emerged. This would indirectly lead to a growing spotlight that succeeded in drawing global attention and bringing in its wake, studies and research, the beginning of charity events and philanthropic drives to fund discussions and the like. Three decades down the line from the first cases of HIV and AIDS emerging, a lot has changed but yet remained constant.

To begin with, someone infected with HIV was thought of as being on a death sentence but the growing studies and research taking in the world of medicines coupled by the rowing funding for looking at therapies and treatment led to the now accepted therapy called Anti Retro viral therapy. But even on this front, when ART medication was first used to arrest the impact of HIV on the human body in 1995-96, there were only multiple combinations then that had to be taken round the clock and came on a very expensive price. Even with the steep cost, the medication then was not able to keep down a host of opportunistic infections. Three decades into the HIV/AIDS journey, there are now over 30 medicines approved for the treatment of HIV infection. The advances being made on the medicine and research front is now such, that symptoms of HIV infection can be held at check while globally, the mortality is falling. But unfortunately enough, the same does not apply as a standard for in developing countries there are cross cutting factors which impacts on the health status of a HIV positive person. Issues such as nutrition, hygiene, safe access to safer sex and clean needles and syringes, free diagnosis for the various opportunistic infections make all the difference in staying a health life after one gets infected with HIV. For populations at risk of getting HIV infection, the barriers to easy access for health facilities and safer means of injecting or sex often led to infections.

It goes without saying that despite the growing awareness about HIV/AIDS, there are still cases of stigma and discrimination that still hinders the fight against HIV/AIDS. The lack of a service friendly environment that enables marginalized communities like transgenders and cross dressing effeminate men to seek treatment for sexually transmitted infections is still a concern in India. The same goes for sex workers and female injecting drug users who remain the most vulnerable to being harassed and deprived of their rights to access for treatment and diagnosis. After free ARTs was rolled out in India, the situation has changed for people living with HIV/AIDS in the country but for certain states like Manipur, Nagaland and Mizoram where injecting drug use has fuelled the HIV/AIDS epidemic due to the sharing of needles and syringes, the fight against HIV/AIDS is being undone by the spectre of Hepatitis C which is still unaddressed under the national AIDS control program. In light of all the gaps that need to be plugged in the journey towards zero HIV infection, a lot needs to be done. And as grassroots NGOs, networks of people living with HIV/AIDS and Government NGOs observe the day in Manipur, one hopes that there is a strong effort for all stakeholders to come together and ensure that national policies and programs also cater to specific regional issues. The International Candlelight Memorial affirms that even as many who are living with HIV infection are getting due attention in terms of their health and their social and civil rights, many countless others lack access to treatment and experience HIV-related stigma, discrimination and human rights violations on a daily basis. Globally, the observation calls upon leadership and political will to get into the fight against HIV/AIDS. It is high time, the political leaders took initiative to set the tone for HIV/AIDS related initiatives and policies in the country.

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IMPHAL, May 19: A team of National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) comprising of Shyam Saran, Chairman NSAB and Ex Foreign Secretary Government of India; PC Haldar, former Director IB; Lt Gen PC Bharadwaj (Retd), former Vice Chief of Army Staff; Lt Gen Prakash Menon (Retd), Military Advisor NSAB and YS Sharawat, Chairman Port Authority of India are on a 10 days visit  to North Eastern States of Manipur, Assam and Arunachal  Pradesh in connection  with infrastructural  development  issues.

According to a PIB release, the team was briefed by Lt Gen AK Sahni, SM, VSM, GOC Spear Corps at Rangapahar, yesterday on the progress of Infrastructure Development in the Corps Z.  The team was also apprised on the operational preparedness and prevailing security situation in the region.  The various issues concerning construction of roads, habitat for the troops and acquisition of land were debated in detail and measures to speed up the process were discussed.

Prior to this, the team had been to Manipur, where in, it visited Moreh town  and interacted with the local Border Trade  Association, and discussions in connection with setting up of the Integrated  Check Post at Moreh were held, it stated.

It then stated, the team also had a meeting with CM of Manipur and discussed the potential of an Economic Corridor to SE Asia. The plan for developing a modern city of international standards at Moreh, the issues of smuggling, drug trafficking and Border Management were also discussed in the said meeting.

The team shall be visiting the forward areas to get a firsthand knowledge on the progress of various infrastructural development works under way. The team is also likely to visit Tezpur, before heading back to Delhi, the release said.

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The precautionary measures announced by the Government of Manipur in wake of the threat posed by super cyclone Mahasen looks rather cosmetic. Announcing a school holiday as a means of damage control is not going to help in case the cyclone lets its fury on the loose. The good news till the time of writing this editorial is that the speed of the cyclone is decreasing even as it has wreaked some havoc in parts of Bangladesh. But if the elements turn nasty, the shutting down of schools may be a little lacking in terms of disaster readiness. Even before the cyclone set on its present course, various parts of the state and notably areas in Churachandpur and Jiribam had reported damages to property in the wake of the storms last week and earlier. It isn’t sure whether any steps were taken up by the concerned authority in case there is one to ascertain the extent of damages sustained, whether any kind of aid were provided to the people and whether any strategies have been chalked out to prevent natural disasters from creating more damages in the future. While natural disasters are unavoidable, what needs to be realized is that with strategic preparations made to control the damages that they would bring into their wake, a lot of loss to lives and property can be avoided. The tough reality however is that the attitude of the Government so far has been to take steps once disaster strikes. This has been true in terms of floods, earthquakes and fire mishaps.

There is no standard fire safety regulations or specifications for even Government buildings, much less ensuring that private spaces follow fire safety measures. A tour of Government buildings may lead to a few fire extinguishers scattered around with none the wiser on whether they can still be used while there are yet to be fire exits being included as a mandatory part of the infrastructure and buildings that are creeping up across the state. If there are disaster management teams being set up, they seem to be confined to paper and the usual fare of holding basic awareness programs while the real need is for sustained preparatory exercises in the form of mock drills. The sight of buildings getting higher in parts of Imphal and other districts also tell a story of neglect by the concerned departments and civic authority given that the state lies in a high seismic zone and the nature of soil beneath the earth is not really conducive for supporting huge and heavy structures using conventional construction as is used for building residences and small time shopping complexes. While cyclones come with forewarning, building collapses do not come with any warnings as seen in the factory collapse that saw thousands being killed in Bangladesh. That collapse and many others of the same nature happen when safety norms are flouted in the race for higher buildings and utter disregard for public safety.

Even without large scale natural disasters befalling on the state, the incessant rains in the last ten days and more should be telling civic authorities that all is not well when it comes to public safety. The water logging that has become a necessary companion with the rains in the state is another possible obstacle of sorts for over and above the mud and the slush it brings in its wake, water covering the roads which are pot holed means that people riding in vehicles or simply walking by are none the wiser on where they should be treading. Another sore sight in Imphal and many other parts of the state that should get the attention of civic authorities and the electricity department in particular are the numerous cables, pylon wires and high tension wires that crisscross overhead and dangle very low over hundreds of people in market areas and in public spaces. Again, there have been mishaps where people have been electrocuted to death when the electric lines have snapped or fallen down on the unsuspecting public. But till the time, there is no vocal agitation with the public on the streets; nothing much prods the authorities concerned to action mode.

The impact of natural disasters expands in proportion with the amount of readiness and planning that is prevalent in areas where such incidents happen. When a cyclone takes part in a place where structures are built keeping safety guidelines in mind, at the most there can be a power outage. But the same cyclone when it gets loose in a place that is bursting with its gaps can only mean a lot of casualty in terms of life and property. If Mahasen decides to play evil in the state, school children will be safe at least and hopefully their houses will be more solid than some schools in the state. For the rest, it means having to brave the aspect of electric wires possibly falling over or falling down a crater in a water logged part of the road somewhere.

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The term ‘banana republic’ first made its entry into the English vocabulary when the American writer O. Henry used it to describe the fictional “Republic of Anchuria” in the book Cabbages and Kings , a collection of thematically related short stories inspired by his experiences in Honduras, during the 1896–97 period. The term acquires a different nuance in political science, where it is used to mean a servile dictatorship that abets or supports, for kickbacks, the exploitation of large-scale plantation agriculture, especially banana cultivation. In economics, a banana republic is a country/state/society operated as a commercial enterprise for private profit, effected by a collusion between the State and favoured monopolies, in which the profit derived from the private exploitation of public lands is private property, while the debts incurred thereby are a public responsibility. On all three accounts, Maipur rightly fits the description of being a banana republic. Tick point one for the lack of law and order where the public takes things into their hands and the law enforcers stand by, not to forget getting involved in crimes on their part and fake surrenders too. Tick point two for even without the banana cultivation, there are the cultivations of Government jobs and pay backs. Yes, we have a Government but one only in terms of seat numbers, and not in terms of governance or taking welfare initiatives for its citizens. Tick point three for how public property and even private property are being taken over for the commercial interests of the elite which translates to the contractor class and many others who cannot be named. But what truly makes the state of things in Manipur a pure banana republic is the nature of mob justice based on emotions and morality. With mobs, there can be no strategically planned actions since the main focus is on what is called the ‘heat of the moment’. Even as civil society groups and organizations demand that Government, ‘concerned authority’ and even the Courts must award befitting punishment to those involved in social crimes, there is growing habit for such groups to storm Court premises and take the law into their own hands.

More surprisingly, there has been no legal action being taken against such groups. Apart from the lack of any legal action being taken against those who incite mob culture, there manner in which anything and everything that a small vocal group shouts out loud is considered gospel and sacrosanct by the silent larger majority is disturbing. The role of women in leading such emotion ranting mobs into taking action and subsequently law into their hands in the manner they deem fit is cause for worry and calls for a serious contemplation on the nature and position of women in the society as they see themselves. If on one hand women are claiming that they are no second rate citizens and must be treated at par with their male counterparts, there must be a realization that women should not build stereotypes for themselves. But stereotypes it is they end of building and perpetuating when they use parts of the traditional women’s attire to shame people or stop people in their tracks. In doing so, they do not realize that they are party to the fact that women’s attire is lowly and impure. It means that women agree that the clothes they wear is not just a piece of material but a symbol and one that is not necessarily held sacred. Not surprisingly, such protests also takes place in others parts of the country with women asking those whom they think need to be shamed to wear bangles. In Manipur, it is the act of stringing phaneks together or using it to ‘beat up’ the other person that is considered shameful and humiliating. In both cases, the materials being used are   identified only with women. By using them on men, there is a tacit acknowledgement that women are inferior since the women are associating shame to the objects. The symbolism inherent in the objects used and the manner in which they are used only feeds to the social stereotype that women are second class citizens and accept that themselves. What greater irony could there be that women would go out of their way to shame but not realize that they are abdicating the shame of being a woman to others.

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The call by the Food and Agriculture Organization, the U.N. food agency to fight off the demands of food production on one hand and growing hunger by including edible insects like grasshoppers, ants and other members of the insect world is most interesting. The FAO has in a report stated that says 2 billion people worldwide already supplement their diets with insects, which are high in protein and minerals, and have environmental benefits but that the majority people who are yet to include insects in their menu must fight off their disgust and take to insects on their plate since they are an underutilized food source not only for people but also for livestock and pets. In South East Asian countries, insects are considered a delicacy though the West and Europe are yet to wake up to the ‘gastronomic delight’ of insects. In India, the main food preference is on cereals and pulses with meat down in the list of priority food. The irony of a nation starving on one hand while having a sizeable cattle population on the other, is often cited by westerners who cannot seem to work out why a nation that is starving is not taking to cow meat, which is a good source of nutrition. Of course, religious sentiments will not allow a majority of the citizens of this country to eat cattle but starve to malnutrition and sometimes, even death. Apart from religious beliefs and practices being factors underlying eating practices, there is also the factor of climate and terrain contributing to what kind of food is being eaten in what particular region. For instance, people in Ladakh whose core belief is non violence and who also practice buddhism still eat meat for the simple reason meat helps to increase the body temperature. Interestingly enough, the conflict between the basic need for food and the necessity of keeping the body warm with eating meat is resolved by having animals slaughtered by other communities. Coming to the north-east region, many people frown on people who eat animals and rodents. What is not realized is that the people who do eat animals out of the usual fare of chicken, pork, beef and mutton are often from hilly terrain where agricultural crops are scarce and food resources low.

Food being a basic need for survival, every human being has to make do with what is available. Food habits also change with time and when boundaries open up. This is true everywhere. In Manipur too, the traditional food preparation processes of cooking without oil and spices have changed into a more pan Indian style of cooking and very much influenced and fused with the Bengali style of cooking which is not strange given the import of Hindusim from Bengal. Earlier generations of Hindus in the state brought up with strict codes of ‘pure’ and impure’ stayed away from eating meat even as fish remained the main focus of food in the valley. The fish could not be done away with since it supplements for protein intake and milk is not really favored by the people of the region. The call by the FAO to turn to insects as a source of food is being validated by the fact that they provide high-quality protein and nutrients when compared with meat and fish and are particularly important as a food supplement for undernourished children. While many people may find it disgusting to think of eating insects, there are emerging studies quoted by the FAO saying that they can be rich sources of copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, selenium and zinc, and fibre. The humble beetle, ant or grasshopper are all being said to come close to lean red meat or broiled fish in terms of protein intake per gram.

Given the growing rate of population on one hand; the shrinking space of agricultural land to produce food, the hazards of eating processed and packed food, the lack of proper storage facilities for food grains in the country, turning to insects may be a practical if not so easy change of food habits. To those of us who do not hesitate while wasting food, the other side of the story is that many starve to death and have to resort to eating dry kernels of fruit to keep themselves alive. The other extreme end is that while the majority of the people may turn their noses at the thought of people eating insects or rodents even, there is the practice of ‘anything goes’ if the same fare gets served at a fancy restaurant at exorbitant rates. Hunger is basic and so is food and if the lowly insect can reduce the gap between the two what needs to be tackled is the value judgment given to people who eat what they eat.

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In a growing urban landscape, the news of evictions as described by state actors and the plight of people living in the contested areas is often seen as a clear-cut case of black and white. The latest case of ‘encroachers being evicted’ that is taking place at Sangakpham area currently is on of the many instances where Government action followed by years of turning away a blind eye has resulted in much angst. As many would know, akin to other public spaces in and around Imphal, the area has for long been lived by people of the area who have constructed their houses and small business establishments over quite a period of time. The construction of the illegal structures were all in public domain and being seen by members of the establishment all this while. And since, no one was taking any action against the first few encroachers, many others followed suit investing their money and setting up homes and shops and the like. Now that the Government has decided to keep the place free from encroachers, the residents are crying foul. Here, the blame must be shared equally by both parties: the public for foraying into public property and using it without seeking legal approval and the government for neglecting to take timely action. In fact the lack of timely attention is often seen as tacit approval, which leads the public into a happy state of denial and not to forget commercial interests to take advantage and take over public property gradually. Often, the people who have settled into public area use the emotional track of pointing out that they have been living in the area since a long time and that destroying their property would amount to a loss of their investment capital etc.

The issue of encroaching into public property by the public is common across the country. In crowded cities and metros, the phenomenon of pavement dwellers and slums spilling into public property and staying out for long spells is beginning to get the attention of activists who say that people are being evicted to appease only a minority of the capitalist class who enter the picture on the card of ‘development’ ‘cleanliness’ and ‘urbanization’ of course. In Manipur too and mostly in the growing urban landscapes in Imphal and other district headquarters, most areas are encroached upon. The public knowingly encroaches while the concerned department willfully looks the other way. This has been happening for a long spell with sudden spurts of the Government machinery waking up from its slumber and getting into defensive and action control mode by demolishing structures. At one point of time, the Nambul river embankment side towards the rear of the Paona bazaar was full of encroachers. In what can only be greater irony, Keishampat area, which is the pulse centre of Imphal since it leads the way to the nerve centers of the town is full of encroachers thriving on both sides of the road.

Do people encroaching on public space need Government support and rehabilitation packages? Unfortunately, the answer is a big no with the Supreme Court saying that encroaching on public property is illegal. The observations came from a Bench comprising Justices Ruma Pal and Markanday Katju in 2006 which allowed civic authorities to demolish slum clusters in New Delhi. The only concession was that it directed civic authorities to ensure that people who had been living in the contested/disputed areas from a certain stipulated time should be helped with finding alternative spaces to settle down again. Of course, forced evictions from a legally owned property is a different issue altogether and the Government can only be on its back foot if it uses its machineries at its disposal to evict people from such areas. There is a wide awning gap between legal paperwork and emotional outbursts though social and traditional forms of ownership in certain cases are also recognized as equal to legal ownership. A case in point would be how this current case of eviction would be different from the evictions of fisher community who have lived down the ages around Loktak lake. But to save the trouble, it would far be better if the citizens on their part did not venture out to public property or to property not owned by them. On its part, the Government needs to step up its role in terms of timely action.

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Yesterday was Mother’s day. One way of looking at such an observation is to scoff at the idea of marking out one single day to highlight the role of such an integral person as a mother in one’s life. The other is to quietly follow the herd mentality and give in to the market forces of buying cards, gifts and public declarations of maternal love and respect on social networking sites. In doing so, the value of relationships gets lost under the barrage of consumerist onslaught that has usurped the consciousness of the society today. The hold of market forces over observations marking out special days for friendship, love, parenthood and others has reached a stage where anyone missing out on sending out a wish, greeting card or gift is pressured into thinking that he/she has lot out on the meaning of the day and its significance. Ironically enough, the sheen of consumerism and market forces playing into social and family relations is not just limited to observations originating from the West but to our very own traditional and cultural occasions like Ningol Chakouba and Cheiraoba where the value of the gifts and presents exchanged are being minutely valued and compared. To come back to the observation of Mother`s Day, which started in the US, it is seen as having its roots in various women peace groups getting together during the American Civil War. These women were groups of mothers whose sons had fought against one another or died fighting against the other on opposing sides. But a day was not yet marked out in a sense and there was no broad based observation till the time a woman called Anna Jarvis, daughter of Anna Reeves Jarvis, who had moved from Grafton, West Virginia, to Philadelphia held a memorial for her mother in 1908. Her campaign to mark a ‘Mother’s Day’ a recognized holiday in the United States became successful in 1914. Tellingly enough, she was already disappointed with its commercialization by the 1920s. But the commercialization of the day egged on by event management houses, the greeting card industry and others led to the day being adopted in various other countries of the world.

Manipur in a sense do not need an additional Mothers’ Day given that there are already two days to mark the much heralded the existence of Meira Paibis. And even though the said two days will not see much attention beyond the confines of the state, it goes without saying that there is a need and urgency to look beyond token observations even with these said two days, beginning with looking at one day being marked instead of two. But more than marking out a day or two, what will be more significant for women in the state and more so for the Meira Paibi community is to look at whether they are to stand for the cause of women per so or for women divided on lines of community, ethnicity and political identity. More than ever, the women in Manipur need to embrace one another blurring the lines that divide and demand for their voices to be heard. It is time they give expressions to why they should not be involved in decision making but kept as foot soldiers when agitations on the streets are called for. A mothers’ day for the women of Manipur who are mothers would be meaningful only when each one can sleep peacefully knowing that they are being heard and revered. For this to happen, the mothers would have to first join hands amongst themselves and close ranks with others hailing from other communities. Only when mothers of sons unite in their grief, anger and frustration can perhaps, a change settle in.

For long, the women of Manipur has been glossed over with tales of historical stories going back to the Nupi Lals even as the present situation of women is nothing to write about. We have seen all too well how women leaders and our mothers are heading into mob justice on one hand while becoming moral custodians and on convenient silent mode when it suits the interest of certain groups. This would need to be changed to a new social and political order where women leaders and the mothers set the terms of peace and reconciliation, wherein they ensure police and legal systems are going on track by getting involved in legal processes. Perhaps then, Mother’s day can acquire the intent and meaning it started out in a foreign country all those years ago.

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