Pradeep C. Nair | Manipur's violence after Prez's rule, but there's still a long way to go

On May 3, 2025, there have been two years since the outbreak of Manipur violence between Maitnis and Kukis, in which 258 people were killed and internally displaced, with about 5,000 houses and 400 houses and 400 religious structures destroyed in chaos. There is a great concern for the causes of violence, which has inspired riots, remedies and future expectations of Manipur. However, there are also many positive reports in the national media. In the past two years, Manipur Island has changed dramatically, but nothing has been lost.

The second anniversary of the outbreak, the violence, killings, bomb explosions, grenade attacks, and less bullet sounds, it is necessary to understand these. Three major changes that took place at the beginning of this year have gradually and certainly put the country in a normal state. The first is the resignation of former Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla as the new governor, the second is the resignation of Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on February 9, and the third is the presidential rule on February 13. New Governor, New Governor, they took Manipur Crisis Crisis as their secretary, and later his first driving experience. He visited the camps of two groups of internally displaced persons, gave them assurances to meet with multiple civil society organizations, women's organizations (all of which are very good), and constantly emphasized their violation of violence, in addition to addressing governance matters, including security. He firmly adhered to his instructions that “peace should precede political solutions” and opposed the constant refutation of the “no solution” insisted by the warring groups.

The overall legal and order situation has changed. Violence and rebellion have declined with insurgency-related activities, and inter-community conflict has almost ended. After the governor announced that he had to surrender all weapons, he had surrendered 1,044 weapons (official figures). Meanwhile, security forces continue to work in the state to drive the weapons society. Security forces have greatly inspected the activities of private gun militias, such as Arambai Tengol in the Imphal Valley and Kuki Gunmen on the hills.

Targeted violence, including blackmail, kidnapping, grenade attacks and other forms of intimidation, also saw a huge decline. All of this gives ordinary people a sense of relief and security. The roadblocks and checkpoints established by warring groups also affected the state's economy and also affected the maintenance of ordinary citizens. Security forces have now addressed this.

Here, it is necessary to mention the Closing Committee led by the Closing Committee (COTU) led by the Commission on Tribal Solidarity (COTU) removed on February 27, which removed the arterial passage on February 27; a very important step.

What attracted no attention was the reopening of the highway, and therefore the commodity was retrained along the NH-2 and NH-37 operations, which brought great success to the people of the hills and valleys. However, passenger travel has not begun, and this will eventually happen once both communities start developing confidence measures. With the opening of roads, economic activities, including trade and agriculture, were also filled. What is particularly important is that farmers resume planting, which was nearly impossible last year and the year before. In all these aspects, business activities have gradually returned to normal.

USP in Manipur has been a numerous festival for its cultural diversity and celebration. Ningol Chakkouba, Yaoshang, Cherioba, Thabal Chonga (Meitei Festivals), Chavang Kut (Kuki Festival), Lui-ngai-ni (Naga Festival) (Naga Festival) (Christmas and Easter), in addition to the past few months, many societal celebrations (Kukis and Nagas) have celebrated a large number of Zeal and Ferver, and are there to celebrate the normal work of Zeal and Ferver, and there to celebrate the fanatical society. Of course, this is still far from the previous calls, and in all these festivals people in all communities (Meiteis, Nagas and Kukis) will celebrate together. What we need to mention here is that in the end, this is also impossible to look forward to the future.

A major problem has always been the rescheduling of internally displaced persons. This is a compelling but challenging necessity. However, it must be known that the initial resettlement began in villages such as Waraoiching, Manamjang and Haibung in the Senapati area, as well as L. Tookliphai near Sugnu (Kakching District); this laid the foundation for a wider recovery. The conversation was launched between the two communities on April 5.

Although the outcome of the negotiation itself is unclear, it is a prudent understanding given that at this stage, given the sharp gap between the two communities and considering that the conversation a few months ago was considered impossible.

There has been a lot of criticism in the media over the past two years, which not only polarizes the two communities, but also makes the field more widely revealing intervention and indulgence in states and powers, especially the interests of the Northeast and India as a whole. The solution to the problem depends heavily on the community in loggerheads (through conversations and meetings), except for impartial governance (which seems to be happening at the moment). The state's security forces have been the silent labor force for babies to move towards normal stages. Although the president's rule is not a permanent solution, it certainly helps the country at this juncture.

The writer is a retired lieutenant, who was formerly the director of Assam Rifle and was in the Northeast