By Amar Yumnam
If someone asks me about the contemporary social picture of Manipur, I would definitely respond that it is now characterised by a situation of “political arms race” among the heterogeneous groups inhabiting the land. This arms race is now occupying the heart and mind, individual and collective, of the people of Manipur today. As I have said in a recent input in this column: “This is the consequence of the absence of a shared trajectory of development for all and lack of development as such. In the wake of the various dialogues currently under way to address the issues of the prevailing state and those opposing it so far, many group and ethnic based articulations are already making rounds. But in none of these, there is any reflection on the possibilities for evolving a development trajectory shared and which can be shared by all. The models being put forward from all sides are all founded on exclusivity and parting of ways. Here we are forgetting certain critical problems. First, we have to enquire if is there any instance in the development history of the world where heterogeneity of ethnicity, geography and development levels have been addressed carefully and successfully by any of the models being proposed. Even supposing that there is no historical experience anywhere in the world more or less similar to the situation in our region, we have to be doubly careful for we would be creating history. When we create history, it should be of a sustainable model of development and not one of failures. Secondly, there is a federal structure politically in this country. This necessarily entails the application of mind jointly and individually by both federal and provincial authorities to share and evolve policies for development and models for shared one at that. While the federal authority may be best competent to evolve and establish policies for the larger frame, the provincial authorities are definitely more equipped to apply mind for addressing the effects on and the interests of the contextual realities. But in the unfolding scenario, there is no instance of the various parties, groups, authorities and ethnicities involved being aware of these core issues. This however is something we cannot and need not bear for long unless we are looking forward to collapses all round.”
This political arms race reminds me of one instance of “positional arms race” wherein sportspersons resort to steroids and other performance enhancing drugs. What is more important for us is how this issue is being taken cared of at regional, national and international levels around the world. We may recall how Jon McEnroe used to claim that he had more talent in his little finger than the entire body of his archrival Ivan Lendl. But the discipline of training enabled Lendl to displace McEnroe from the top of tennis rankings. This example of the success of Lendl is significant as compared to the usefulness of steroids. First, steroids are expensive. Second it does not yield any lasting value. There are negative side effects of hair loss, skin disorders, rising aggressiveness, and even psychotic. Further, there is no enhancement of the value for viewers by the use of drugs. In fact, any discovery of drug use pulls the psychological value of viewer satisfaction absolutely down. We may compare this case with another case of investment for enhancing performance. The singers spend fortunes on coaches for voice training and related learning. These lead to an outcome leading to the long term enhancement of value to the singers as well as listeners as contrasted to the investment on steroids. Now the question which arises in the context of Manipur is how the heterogeneous groups are spending their resources. Are they investing on steroids or on voice coaches? Let us remember how our own Mary Kom has prepared herself to attain her position today.
While attempting my own response to this question, I would like to situate myself in the emerging politico-economic scenario of Manipur. With the rising of deeper and wider economic relationships with South East and East Asia, Manipur is sooner than later moving towards a direction of boundaryless world of employment opportunities. All our political, social and economic interventions should now be directed towards preparing the people for this fast unfolding world. Here I would like to refer to the findings emerging from research in Experimental Economics. It is emerging that there is no instance of the groups outperforming the individuals in strategic response to situations of risk and uncertainty. When it comes to performance, the groups have failed to outperform individuals in a world of uncertainty. The groups of course outperform individuals in a world under risks. Another study of individual culture orientations covering 29 countries (this study would soon be coming out in print) also provides significant supplementary finding inter alia wherein the significance of self-enhancement for career success has been detected. This is exactly where we should draw the implications for Manipur. In Manipur, we always say with pride, there are no beggars. I would immediately explain this as a case where the risk is attended to by social norms. But the world unfolding before us would be a world of rising uncertainties and definitely not a world of rising risks. The suggestions, behaviour and articulations all tend to lead to a world of deepening and widening unpreparedness to face uncertainties. This however would not take Manipur and any group within towards a better world. Further, in the emerging world of the unfolding competitions, I have always emphasised in the context of Manipur, the battle is to be fought at the individual levels and not at the level of groups. The competitions we are going to face increasingly is in the context of individual efficiency and competence and not in a world of primitive accumulation.
All these mean that the articulations, engagements and efforts we are busy today with would only lead to stunting the preparedness of the people to face the larger uncertainties emerging in a context of boundaryless economic opportunities. The time dominated by group security ensuring individual safety from risks of life is long gone for good. Now is the time to concentrate on individual performance and efficiency. But the business, engagements and mobilisations happening today in Manipur are far removed from this imperative.
I only hope that the results emerging from the application of game theory to Economics emerge true in the case of Manipur. It is found that inefficient conflicting group behaviour can result in cooperative behaviour at individual levels. Destructive group behaviour has a self-destructive cycle to result to this outcome invariably.