Manipur To-day and To-morrow It is too long for Manipur to remain underdeveloped, poor & weak
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Prof N Mohendro Singh
Today, Manipur “the Jewel of India” has been facing highly uneasy development experience;- a peculiar turmoil marked by both cascading and ripple effects. The State is, at the moment, at crossroads being caught in the wilderness of confused aspirations of disillusioned masses and open manifestations of patriotic arrogance in a highly competitive atmosphere of globalisation. Peace is not a free gift of nature; and freedom is not free in the sense that both peace and freedom are conditional. The past development experience lays foundation of the present while that of the present for the future. The fundamental relationship of time dimension between past and present and that of present and future cannot be lost sight of in any attempt to prepare the framework of peace and prosperity. The unattended grievances, overlooked concerns and neglected tensions of yesterday become the source of multiplying problems of today. Now how can the present Government of Manipur prepare a better “future-ready” policy ? What type of future ? What type of policy ? How and when ? How far Manipur could be an enthusiastic partner of the Vikshit Bharat 2047 ? This is, perhaps, the greatest challenge of the Government of Manipur. One thing is absolutely clear that we should not go by the beaten track.
We should not forget that the fate of any State depends upon the will of the people and their preparedness to make sacrifices for the cause of development, political maturity and stability, atmosphere of peace and cooperation, above all meticulous planning (UN).
Do we have the will of people and their preparedness to make sacrifices for the cause of development ? Are we conscious of the necessity ? Well, curiously the State is experiencing the ugly phenomenon of visible lack of academic citizenship. Manipur is a land of Learning Shops. Literacy may be high but outcome is low. Look at the “election bazars, relay bazars and shutdown havoc.” The social conscience and disci- pline, it seems, has been largely taken over by the bubbles of status symbol.
No National entrepreneur wants to invest in the State full of hostile atmosphere. This is a great loss, because the future of Manipur depends upon the size and scale of private corporate investment.
Education in the State is just a status symbol, not for exploring truth and facts of passing phases of the society. Remember, right thinking is a ultimate human resource. We may be a literate person but not necessarily asset of the society. Our unwarranted activities qualify us to be a liability—a burden in the society.
What about political maturity and stability in Mani- pur ? Politics is about creation and distribution of power while economics is about creation and distribution of wealth. Both are inter-related and normally go together. By and large, the charm of Parliamentary democracy lies in the hands of the elected leaders. The humble simplicity of the people should not be exploited and misused. The standard of engagement with the counterparts of other contemporary States and leaders of Central Government becomes key in the highly competitive world today. Administration by the common sense is practically outdated and counter- productive. Words once spoken cannot be taken back. One has to look at the honourable leaders from five perspectives; — origin of the person, the power, the position, the platform and the standard of speech and service.
Let us remember what John F. Kennedy, — the youngest 35th President of United States of America acted. He was very particular about what he was going to speak on public platform. He was a highly qualified graduate in Arts of Harvard University and also a graduate in Business Adminis- tration of Stanford. He was deeply interested in international affairs. He revised the draft of his speech on “the New Generation of Americans” three times (20th January 1960). “If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich,” he said. He fearlessly struggled against the “the common enemies of man ; — tyranny, poverty, disease and war itself”. Part of a speech still quoted is “Americans; ask not what the country can do for you; ask what you can do for the country”. He was guided by the practical philosophy that Leadership and Learning go together.
What is the harm in learning lessons from the great leaders ? Maturity begins with learning. It implies critical examination of four perspectives of any challenge; left-right, up-down, present-future, short and long term loss and gains and act on the best out of different options. One should not act blindly in this age of cut-throat world. Remember, right thinking is ultimate human resource and rare virtue of a Great Leader.
The third pre-requisite is about peace and co-operation. Both are subtle and equally challenging. Peace is the Grandma of all creative activities while co- operation is the long arm of the mother. It is a rare product of interaction of diffe- rent progressive forces operating in any society. It is rare in the sense that the present society survives under the strained circumstances of odds and contradictory forces. However, to ensure peace and protect people from the worries of broken society, many acts and rules are framed. There is also the Constitution. But the problem lies in the fact that the Acts and rules, and even the provisions of the Constitutions are largely on the paper and very few on the ground. Added to this is the unfair and corrupt application and thus rule bound society becomes an empty exercise and the poor are powerless and victims of injustice.
The peaceful atmosphere largely depends on the strong and uncompromising Government. In Manipur the ethnic conflict and commercial rivalry have conspired, to a large extent, to negate any attempt for the restoration of peace and social cohesion. The militant conservatism, the ugly creation, destroys the foundation of peaceful initiative. The so-called unity in diversity and peaceful co-exis- tence remains a mere wishful thinking. When a Manipuri, the citizen of India remains deprived of the freedom of travel in Kangpokpi, Churachandpur and Moreh, the principle of peaceful co-existence has been questioned. The Constitution guarantees the free- dom of travel and stay in any part of India. What about actual reality in Manipur ?
Last but not the least is about meticulous planning. The planned life will tell us of objectives, direction and ultimate destination. The right process of planning saves wastage of resources, saves time and energy;— and puts the trajectory on the right direction. This is, perhaps, the spirit of meticulous planning. No Nation can develop without meticulous planning.
The meticulous planning and budget are intimately related. All resources meant for defined development are carefully calculated and positioned in the right perspective. Budget, better known as a Bible of Development, the Master Docu- ment contains the earmarked provisions keeping in view the trend of all economic activities. Now the question is who prepares the budget of Manipur ? Who handles the budget ? The master document is prepared by the men in high position including political executives–not by the common people.
The lopsided planning and half-hearted implementation become the major source of economic hardships suffered by the poor people. As such, one can say that the fate of the economy largely depends on the rare acumen of good governance and administration. What about Manipur ? The net result is highly disappointing. The State has been characterised as one of the poorest States in the country. The Per Capita Income at current prices is only Rs. 1,11,853 in 2021-22 as against Rs. 5,19,964 of Sikkim, Rs. 5,32,854 of Goa, and Rs 1,59,419 of Tripura. This means on an average the Manipuris enjoy the standard of living far below those of contemporary States; — one-fifth only. As a result of lopsided planning and development the so-called “ease of living and inclusive growth” remains a mere wishful thinking.
The Headcount Ratio of Poverty of Manipur is 10.95 of rural area, — much higher than 3.43 of urban area. Another alarming phenomenon is high Intensity of Poverty ranging from 40.12 of urban area to 42.20 of rural area. Without two square meals a day and a comfortable dwelling, these wretched people live in the world of helplessness. Suffering in silence is part of their lives. Suffering is permanent, obscure and dark. Violent reactions strive on the helplessness of the abject poverty. It, when chance comes, acts just like as smouldering fire. Social degeneration begins with the collapse of morality. The present prolonged instability being experienced in Manipur can be traced to the mass poverty in various pockets in the State.
Look at the daily markets in Manipur where the wretched Imas are selling by the side of the roads with a meagre working capital not exceeding Rs 1000 borrowed from money lenders and near relatives on the condition of daily repayment. The wretched Imas working under the incessant rain and scorching heat of sun with a broken umbrella are heads of their poor family. Is this dismal scenario the net result of faulty planning and development created by the Government ?
Perhaps the most disturbing feature of the tottering economy of Manipur is too much import dependence. Manipur is a nice place to sell in and not to buy from. Surprisingly, Manipur is running without a single wholesale market; — a telling sign of poor, primitive and survival oriented economy.
It is too long for Manipur to remain most underdeveloped, poor and weak. This is the greatest challenge for the present Government. Now there is a need for changing both Guard and Gear with a strong determination to change the dismal tide. There is a need for tightening the belt to curb corruption and inefficiency;— the two greatest enemies of the State. We can expect the ray of hope only through Big Push of social and economic development. Peace through Development should now be the declared State policy. We can think of the valuable service of Peace and Development Committee to prepare a new atmosphere of awareness and willingness across the State.
The writer is Chairman, Institute of Development Studies
Today, Manipur “the Jewel of India” has been facing highly uneasy development experience;- a peculiar turmoil marked by both cascading and ripple effects. The State is, at the moment, at crossroads being caught in the wilderness of confused aspirations of disillusioned masses and open manifestations of patriotic arrogance in a highly competitive atmosphere of globalisation. Peace is not a free gift of nature; and freedom is not free in the sense that both peace and freedom are conditional. The past development experience lays foundation of the present while that of the present for the future. The fundamental relationship of time dimension between past and present and that of present and future cannot be lost sight of in any attempt to prepare the framework of peace and prosperity. The unattended grievances, overlooked concerns and neglected tensions of yesterday become the source of multiplying problems of today. Now how can the present Government of Manipur prepare a better “future-ready” policy ? What type of future ? What type of policy ? How and when ? How far Manipur could be an enthusiastic partner of the Vikshit Bharat 2047 ? This is, perhaps, the greatest challenge of the Government of Manipur. One thing is absolutely clear that we should not go by the beaten track.
We should not forget that the fate of any State depends upon the will of the people and their preparedness to make sacrifices for the cause of development, political maturity and stability, atmosphere of peace and cooperation, above all meticulous planning (UN).
Do we have the will of people and their preparedness to make sacrifices for the cause of development ? Are we conscious of the necessity ? Well, curiously the State is experiencing the ugly phenomenon of visible lack of academic citizenship. Manipur is a land of Learning Shops. Literacy may be high but outcome is low. Look at the “election bazars, relay bazars and shutdown havoc.” The social conscience and disci- pline, it seems, has been largely taken over by the bubbles of status symbol.
No National entrepreneur wants to invest in the State full of hostile atmosphere. This is a great loss, because the future of Manipur depends upon the size and scale of private corporate investment.
Education in the State is just a status symbol, not for exploring truth and facts of passing phases of the society. Remember, right thinking is a ultimate human resource. We may be a literate person but not necessarily asset of the society. Our unwarranted activities qualify us to be a liability—a burden in the society.
What about political maturity and stability in Mani- pur ? Politics is about creation and distribution of power while economics is about creation and distribution of wealth. Both are inter-related and normally go together. By and large, the charm of Parliamentary democracy lies in the hands of the elected leaders. The humble simplicity of the people should not be exploited and misused. The standard of engagement with the counterparts of other contemporary States and leaders of Central Government becomes key in the highly competitive world today. Administration by the common sense is practically outdated and counter- productive. Words once spoken cannot be taken back. One has to look at the honourable leaders from five perspectives; — origin of the person, the power, the position, the platform and the standard of speech and service.
Let us remember what John F. Kennedy, — the youngest 35th President of United States of America acted. He was very particular about what he was going to speak on public platform. He was a highly qualified graduate in Arts of Harvard University and also a graduate in Business Adminis- tration of Stanford. He was deeply interested in international affairs. He revised the draft of his speech on “the New Generation of Americans” three times (20th January 1960). “If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich,” he said. He fearlessly struggled against the “the common enemies of man ; — tyranny, poverty, disease and war itself”. Part of a speech still quoted is “Americans; ask not what the country can do for you; ask what you can do for the country”. He was guided by the practical philosophy that Leadership and Learning go together.
What is the harm in learning lessons from the great leaders ? Maturity begins with learning. It implies critical examination of four perspectives of any challenge; left-right, up-down, present-future, short and long term loss and gains and act on the best out of different options. One should not act blindly in this age of cut-throat world. Remember, right thinking is ultimate human resource and rare virtue of a Great Leader.
The third pre-requisite is about peace and co-operation. Both are subtle and equally challenging. Peace is the Grandma of all creative activities while co- operation is the long arm of the mother. It is a rare product of interaction of diffe- rent progressive forces operating in any society. It is rare in the sense that the present society survives under the strained circumstances of odds and contradictory forces. However, to ensure peace and protect people from the worries of broken society, many acts and rules are framed. There is also the Constitution. But the problem lies in the fact that the Acts and rules, and even the provisions of the Constitutions are largely on the paper and very few on the ground. Added to this is the unfair and corrupt application and thus rule bound society becomes an empty exercise and the poor are powerless and victims of injustice.
The peaceful atmosphere largely depends on the strong and uncompromising Government. In Manipur the ethnic conflict and commercial rivalry have conspired, to a large extent, to negate any attempt for the restoration of peace and social cohesion. The militant conservatism, the ugly creation, destroys the foundation of peaceful initiative. The so-called unity in diversity and peaceful co-exis- tence remains a mere wishful thinking. When a Manipuri, the citizen of India remains deprived of the freedom of travel in Kangpokpi, Churachandpur and Moreh, the principle of peaceful co-existence has been questioned. The Constitution guarantees the free- dom of travel and stay in any part of India. What about actual reality in Manipur ?
Last but not the least is about meticulous planning. The planned life will tell us of objectives, direction and ultimate destination. The right process of planning saves wastage of resources, saves time and energy;— and puts the trajectory on the right direction. This is, perhaps, the spirit of meticulous planning. No Nation can develop without meticulous planning.
The meticulous planning and budget are intimately related. All resources meant for defined development are carefully calculated and positioned in the right perspective. Budget, better known as a Bible of Development, the Master Docu- ment contains the earmarked provisions keeping in view the trend of all economic activities. Now the question is who prepares the budget of Manipur ? Who handles the budget ? The master document is prepared by the men in high position including political executives–not by the common people.
The lopsided planning and half-hearted implementation become the major source of economic hardships suffered by the poor people. As such, one can say that the fate of the economy largely depends on the rare acumen of good governance and administration. What about Manipur ? The net result is highly disappointing. The State has been characterised as one of the poorest States in the country. The Per Capita Income at current prices is only Rs. 1,11,853 in 2021-22 as against Rs. 5,19,964 of Sikkim, Rs. 5,32,854 of Goa, and Rs 1,59,419 of Tripura. This means on an average the Manipuris enjoy the standard of living far below those of contemporary States; — one-fifth only. As a result of lopsided planning and development the so-called “ease of living and inclusive growth” remains a mere wishful thinking.
The Headcount Ratio of Poverty of Manipur is 10.95 of rural area, — much higher than 3.43 of urban area. Another alarming phenomenon is high Intensity of Poverty ranging from 40.12 of urban area to 42.20 of rural area. Without two square meals a day and a comfortable dwelling, these wretched people live in the world of helplessness. Suffering in silence is part of their lives. Suffering is permanent, obscure and dark. Violent reactions strive on the helplessness of the abject poverty. It, when chance comes, acts just like as smouldering fire. Social degeneration begins with the collapse of morality. The present prolonged instability being experienced in Manipur can be traced to the mass poverty in various pockets in the State.
Look at the daily markets in Manipur where the wretched Imas are selling by the side of the roads with a meagre working capital not exceeding Rs 1000 borrowed from money lenders and near relatives on the condition of daily repayment. The wretched Imas working under the incessant rain and scorching heat of sun with a broken umbrella are heads of their poor family. Is this dismal scenario the net result of faulty planning and development created by the Government ?
Perhaps the most disturbing feature of the tottering economy of Manipur is too much import dependence. Manipur is a nice place to sell in and not to buy from. Surprisingly, Manipur is running without a single wholesale market; — a telling sign of poor, primitive and survival oriented economy.
It is too long for Manipur to remain most underdeveloped, poor and weak. This is the greatest challenge for the present Government. Now there is a need for changing both Guard and Gear with a strong determination to change the dismal tide. There is a need for tightening the belt to curb corruption and inefficiency;— the two greatest enemies of the State. We can expect the ray of hope only through Big Push of social and economic development. Peace through Development should now be the declared State policy. We can think of the valuable service of Peace and Development Committee to prepare a new atmosphere of awareness and willingness across the State.
The writer is Chairman, Institute of Development Studies