The Kangleipak State in North East India was established in the 12th Century laying the foundations of what is today Manipur. It came under Burmese control before the British occupied it as a princely state in 1891. After Independence Manipur was declared a union territory in 1956 and a full fledged state in 1972. It has been a major gathering point and crossroads of Asian economy as it connects India and Central Asia to Southeast and East Asian countries. Therefore the culture of the people too is rich as it is influenced by many other communities. The chief community of Manipur are the Meitei people and their language is used as a lingua franca by other tribes such as the Naga and Kuki, who speak Sino-Burmese languages. The Meitei represent almost 53% of the population of the Manipur state and live chiefly in the urban valley of Manipur.
In recent days we have witnessed stories of violent clashes and destruction from Manipur. This was due to a recent flare in a long divide between the Meitei people and other tribes of Manipur, what is known as the Hill - Valley tensions. The Meitei people have classically been the rulers of Manipur and they live in the prosperous valley of Imphal in Manipur. Their language has been the official language of Manipur and one of the 22 recognized languages of India. Other tribes such as the Naga and Kuki make up 24% and 16% of the population of Manipur. They have historically lived under the Meitei people and inhabit the hills surrounding the Imphal valley region. The divide exists as the Meitei people have been demanding the categorization of Scheduled Tribes.
The Naga and Kuki tribes enjoy the status of Scheduled Tribes and believe this is their only advantage against the dominance of the Meitei people in Manipur. They argue that the Meitei people have historically enjoyed the riches as rulers and inhabitants of the prosperous valley region. While they themselves lived in poverty in the underdeveloped hill regions. Meitei people also have the advantage of their language being the official language of Manipur and thus a "preservation of culture" would not be a valid reason for upsetting the advantages of the Naga and Kuki tribes.
The Meitei people on the other hand argue that it is imperative they receive the status of Scheduled Tribes in order to protect their culture and heritage. They point out that British anthropologists have classified them as a Hindu Tribe and that they were listed as one of the tribes of Manipur when they merged but the Constitution order on Scheduled Tribes of 1950 refused them this tag and thus have been left out of the ST List.
A recent ruling by the Manipur High Court urging the State Govt. to include the Meitei into the ST List reignited this long conflict once more. A "Tribal Solidarity March" by the Naga and Kuki tribes soon erupted in violence as the army was deployed to control the situation.
A major reason for the whole saga unfolding in the North East is the lack of faith that the Indian Government would do something for them. The North East region has felt largely ignored by the Indian Government. The partition of India struck a heavy blow to the North East region from which it has not yet fully recovered. The entire trade routes, communication lines and markets were lost and a very narrow stretch of land now connected the region with the rest of India. Due to lack of strong unifying leaders and political fragmentation the North East region became very unstable as time progressed. Numerous militant and insurgent terrorist bodies operate in the region finding haven in Burma and money from China and Pakistan. Most of the land remains in constant struggle and turmoil and development has been very slow.
China has been taking complete advantage of this situation. The borders of British India and Tibet were decided by the McMahon line placing Arunachal Pradesh firmly in India. However Arunachal Pradesh has always had a close affinity with Tibet and the Dalai Lama. China now uses this to justify that Arunachal Pradesh is in fact "South Tibet" and refuses to acknowledge the McMahon line. In 1962 China launched an attack upto Wallong and Bomdila in Arunachal Pradesh. Arunachal Pradesh is a very important military, strategic and economic focal point. Its major rivers have the capacity to be a powerhouse to provide water and electricity. It is also a avenue of rail. road and air connectivity to East Asia and it is also rich in mineral resources which are yet to be explored.
China has made rapid advancements into the North East region and has come up right to the border in the Chumbi valley in the Siliguri corridor and the threat to the North East hasn't been greater. However the Indian Government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been working tirelessly to develop the North East and diminish North East isolationism in his Act East policy.. Sikkim has been massively developed and stands as an example of the benefits of positive relations with the Centre. The foundation of a new airport in remote Arunachal was just laid adding to the 17 airports being made in the North East. In Arunachal further projects amounting to 800 million dollars were announced. In 2022 more than 4000 kms of road projects were completed with an additional 7500 kms of projects still ongoing. 20,000 crores have already been spent in developing and expanding the railways with 75,000 crores allocated for further 20 projects. The project to make Brahmaputra River the second National Waterway of India is also underway estimated at 461 crores.
Therefore as we can see, the Naga and Kuki tribes do not have to worry about the development of their regions and neither do the Meitei have to worry about preserving their culture. The Indian Government is taking huge steps to ensure the protection and development of the North East people. On Jan 4th of 2022 Prime Minister Modi inaugurated 13 infrastructural, economical and social projects in Manipur worth 1800 crores and laid the foundation of another 9 projects amounting to 2900 crores. The sentiments of his speech echo the feeling of all Indians. The North East region has been ignored for far too long. The people have become disillusioned and recent cases of racial discrimination have not helped their sentiments. However our Prime Minister urges all North Eastern people to forgive and forget and move on to a prosperous future together. He reiterated the greatness of the people and their hardiness which he particularly admires. He laments the time lost in the past where this great and vast region was left ignored but is optimistic for the wonderful future that awaits it.
Written by Ariyaan Moktan.
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