Saving Manipur’s vanishing paddy lands and wetlands : From legislation to action
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Thangjam Ranjit
Manipur is a hilly State with only 8% plain area in the valley districts sheltering about 70% of the total population of the State. Because of the paucity of arable land in the limited plain areas for agricultural pursuits, the Manipur Legislative Assembly in September, 2014 passed the historic “The Manipur Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2014” with a thumping majority.
It is common knowledge of that many of our fertile and resourceful land areas in the hill and valley districts have been occupied through slow and steady invasion of immigrants coming from the neighbouring countries, such as Nepal, Myanmar and Bangladesh in the last few decades and have established their strongholds by increasing population through large scale influx and uncontrolled family planning, deforestation and illegal paddy plantation in large areas of hill districts, in particular and valley districts in general. As a consequence, the local people are affected gradually and irreparably thereby threatening the very existence of the indigenous population of the state.
In a similar way, on account of the non-imple- mentation of the “Manipur Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2014” for more than a decade, there have been mushrooming growth of non-agricultural activities in the valley districts, more particularly in Imphal East and Imphal West Districts. The non-agricultural activities such as construction of buildings for educational institutions, residential structures, stone crushing units, workshops, shops, brick fields, etc., mostly on either side of the National Highways, State Highways, inter-village roads, etc. In view of the ever increasing trend of shrinkage of cultivable lands and wetlands in the valley and hill districts on the one hand, and ever increasing population growth, on the other, the State is becoming highly deficient in food production.
It is imperative for the people to understand the very implications of the above Act which the Government of Manipur is mandated to implement.
Some salient features and highlights for Manipur Conservation of Paddy Land and Wet Lands Act, 2014 are as follows :
a) The Act empowers the formation of monitoring committees of Panchayat and Municipality levels with powers to report illegal activities relating to the paddy lands and wetlands.
b) The Act also restricts the conversion or reclamation of paddy lands and wetlands to boost agricultural growth while it prohibits unauthorized conversion or reclamation imposing penalties of 3-5 years imprisonment and fines upto Rs. 50,000 – 2 lakh.
c) The Act authorizes District Level Committees converting small portions of paddy land for residential purposes upto 0.20 acres or 0.08093 hectares in Panchayat areas and 0.10 acre or 0.04046 hectare in Municipal area, as the case may be, for the construction of residential buildings/structures for the owner of the paddy land.
d) The very Act also empowers the constitution of different local level monitoring committees to identify and protect paddy lands and wet lands effectively.
Each sub-divisional official committee shall inspect the paddy land within its jurisdiction to monitor whether the provisions of the Act are being complied with, and to report to the SDO regarding violations, if any of the provisions of the Act.
The Committee also shall examine the reason for keeping the paddy land fallow and to suggest remedial measures so as to persuade the holder of paddy land to use it for any intermediary crops.
e) The committee shall prepare data bank with the details of the paddy land along with the survey number with the help of the map prepared on the basis of satellite pictures/imageries.
Considering the unabated large scale decrease in our precious arable lands, the Government of Manipur should take serious note of it and implement the same, a decade old Act, in letter and spirit, in order to protect and conserve our paddy lands and wet lands, which form the life and blood of the people of the State at an early date.
Manipur is a hilly State with only 8% plain area in the valley districts sheltering about 70% of the total population of the State. Because of the paucity of arable land in the limited plain areas for agricultural pursuits, the Manipur Legislative Assembly in September, 2014 passed the historic “The Manipur Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2014” with a thumping majority.
It is common knowledge of that many of our fertile and resourceful land areas in the hill and valley districts have been occupied through slow and steady invasion of immigrants coming from the neighbouring countries, such as Nepal, Myanmar and Bangladesh in the last few decades and have established their strongholds by increasing population through large scale influx and uncontrolled family planning, deforestation and illegal paddy plantation in large areas of hill districts, in particular and valley districts in general. As a consequence, the local people are affected gradually and irreparably thereby threatening the very existence of the indigenous population of the state.
In a similar way, on account of the non-imple- mentation of the “Manipur Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2014” for more than a decade, there have been mushrooming growth of non-agricultural activities in the valley districts, more particularly in Imphal East and Imphal West Districts. The non-agricultural activities such as construction of buildings for educational institutions, residential structures, stone crushing units, workshops, shops, brick fields, etc., mostly on either side of the National Highways, State Highways, inter-village roads, etc. In view of the ever increasing trend of shrinkage of cultivable lands and wetlands in the valley and hill districts on the one hand, and ever increasing population growth, on the other, the State is becoming highly deficient in food production.
It is imperative for the people to understand the very implications of the above Act which the Government of Manipur is mandated to implement.
Some salient features and highlights for Manipur Conservation of Paddy Land and Wet Lands Act, 2014 are as follows :
a) The Act empowers the formation of monitoring committees of Panchayat and Municipality levels with powers to report illegal activities relating to the paddy lands and wetlands.
b) The Act also restricts the conversion or reclamation of paddy lands and wetlands to boost agricultural growth while it prohibits unauthorized conversion or reclamation imposing penalties of 3-5 years imprisonment and fines upto Rs. 50,000 – 2 lakh.
c) The Act authorizes District Level Committees converting small portions of paddy land for residential purposes upto 0.20 acres or 0.08093 hectares in Panchayat areas and 0.10 acre or 0.04046 hectare in Municipal area, as the case may be, for the construction of residential buildings/structures for the owner of the paddy land.
d) The very Act also empowers the constitution of different local level monitoring committees to identify and protect paddy lands and wet lands effectively.
Each sub-divisional official committee shall inspect the paddy land within its jurisdiction to monitor whether the provisions of the Act are being complied with, and to report to the SDO regarding violations, if any of the provisions of the Act.
The Committee also shall examine the reason for keeping the paddy land fallow and to suggest remedial measures so as to persuade the holder of paddy land to use it for any intermediary crops.
e) The committee shall prepare data bank with the details of the paddy land along with the survey number with the help of the map prepared on the basis of satellite pictures/imageries.
Considering the unabated large scale decrease in our precious arable lands, the Government of Manipur should take serious note of it and implement the same, a decade old Act, in letter and spirit, in order to protect and conserve our paddy lands and wet lands, which form the life and blood of the people of the State at an early date.