Making Manipur bandh and blockade free Governor’s stand noted

Governor Najma Heptulla needs a round of applause. If not for anything else, the Governor needs to be acknowledged for making it a point to state that the newly installed BJP led coalition Government is committed to making Manipur a bandh and blockade free State. This is perhaps the first time in the history of the numerous addresses delivered by successive Governors of the State that the Head of the State has made it point to underline that the State Government is committed to making Manipur a bandh and blockade free State. And it is this that the BJP led Government should work towards and not merely reduce the address of the Governor to a statement. It also stands true that in any endeavour to make the State bandh and blockade free, the people as a whole, particularly the different civil society organisations and student organisations too chip in and see how they can desist from imposing a bandh or a blockade all in the name of the public. This has been going on for too long and it is time everyone falls in line. A look at the reality should tell its own story. Why has the Governor felt it necessary to announce that it is the commitment of the State Government to make Manipur a bandh and blockade free State ? How many days are lost in a year due to bandhs and blockades ? What about the economic losses suffered by the people ? What about the future of the young students, who have to compete with their counter parts from across the country ? Has anyone ever given a serious thought to any of these posers ?

At the moment, thousands of young students are appearing for their Class X and Class XII exams and in a few months from now their results will be declared. Has anyone ever given a thought on why numerous parents deem it better to send their children outside the State to pursue their higher studies, especially after Class XII ? It is not the lack of good colleges alone why this is so, but due to the prevailing reality. Bandhs and blockades not only rob the daily wage earners of their right to earn a living but also grievously impact on the academic pursuit of the young students and in this age of excellence and cut throat competition, can Manipur really afford to carry on with the bandh and blockade culture ? These are questions which the public should ask themselves and yet at the same time it is also important for the newly installed Government to question why so many civil society organisations and student bodies feel it necessary to impose a bandh or a blockade ? In Chief Minister N Biren, the BJP led Government has a man who has seen it all and experienced as well and it is only right that he attends to these questions in his avatar as a BJP leader now. The Governor has set the ball rolling and it is only right that the Government and the people reciprocate and see how such a culture can be given the quiet burial. For too long Manipur has suffered.

Source: The Sangai Express