IMPHAL, August 2: The process of the Indo-Myanmar fencing has created quite a stir in the state with several organizations, including political parties picking up the issue declaring that a major part of the state has been encroached upon and left on the Myanmar side of the fencing.
A 11 member team of the Manipur People’s Party led by its internal auditor, Advocate N Ojit returned to the state capital today following an inspection of the said site where the fencing process is in progress since July 31.
The MPP today declared that the party will initiate several agitations unless the government revokes the fencing process and conduct a new survey.
The team flanked by party president N Sovakiran called a press conference elaborating on the findings of the team during the inspection.
Speaking to media persons, N Ojit said that the team visited eight villages in Chandel district affected by the fencing process- Govajang village, Yangnoi village, B Bongjang village, Morphei village, Nungkam village, Saitang village, Tatyang village, S Moljon village and Yangoipokpi village.
Speaking to the MPP team, the village authorities had informed that the fencing has affected more than half of most of the villages, while the whole of Morphei village has been encroached, he said.
He continued that though the actual fencing is yet to be erected, the
survey for the fencing has already been conducted and these villages will fall on the Myanmar side of the fencing once fencing has been erected.
He continued that the team had also interacted with the villagers during the inspection.
One such individual was an octogenarian, who was present during Indo-Burma Survey of India conducted during 1969-72, he said.
The elderly individual had informed the team that 71 pillars were erected during the survey then, however all the pillars have today gone missing, he said.
The octogenarian was also confident that he could pin point all the exact spot where the pillars were erected, he said.
Addressing the press conference, N Ojit further said that even as the state is yet to recover from the act of conceding of the Kabaw valley to then Burma by Jawaharlal Nehru, another Congress led government at the Centre is today trying to concede more land to the state to Myanmar.
Continuing his tirade over the inability of the state authorities to come out with the issue, he lamented that both the Chandel district Deputy Commissioner and the ADC Moreh had failed to act when the issue had started out.
If the two officials had informed the public earlier, the issue could have been solved early on, he said.
N.Ojit further appealed to all political parties to take up the initiative to save the territorial integrity of the state.
He further declared that the MPP will launch all kinds of agitations unless the government re-conducts the survey and added that failure to re-conduct the survey and going on with the previous survey will only invite more tension.
He further condemned the state Chief Minister who had always shouted for the territorial integrity of Manipur for maintaining a silence even though the territorial integrity of the state is at stake.
President of the youth front N Ronel who was also part of the team said that during the inspection, villagers had informed the MPP team that a BRTF official during the survey for the fencing had informed the villagers that since there was a river just below the villages, the fencing cannot be erected there, nor can the fencing be erected on the Myanmar side and so the fencing had to encroached upon the villages.
Other complains from the villages include that the during the survey, water bodies which were filled up by the villagers so as to develop connectivity between the village have also been encroached upon just for their convenience, he said.