Under the Constitution of India, the role of a governor is of a ceremonial one. Yet, he is the repository of the executive powers of the state which can be exercised by him in accordance with the Constitution. He has the right to be kept informed of the decisions of the state. One very important aspect is that every bill passed by the state legislature must accept his assent before it can become a law. He may give his assent to a bill. He may reserve it for the consideration of the president at his disposal. The Seventh Session of the 10th Manipur Legislative Assembly, the first Session of 2014 has begun. The Session is special for Shri Vinod Kumar Duggal. It is his first address in the Assembly as the Governor of Manipur after his appointment in December last year. He had served as a civil servant at different levels. He had been members in important Committees. Shrikrishna Committee on Telangana is one such Committee in which he had served as member secretary. We believe his accumulated wisdom will prevail in his tenure as the Governor of Manipur. We herewith extend warm welcome to him. In his first ever address in the Assembly, the Governor conveyed that his government has been striving for ‘all round development’ and ‘delivery of good governance’ for the people of Manipur. He stressed that the guiding values of his government have been ‘equitable and inclusive development with secular ideals’. These are what the present government claims. A tall claim sprinkled with value loaded terms. We should be pardoned if His Excellency’s privilege is hurt. One can understand the obligations of a constitutional head. It is mandatory for him to represent the government in a good light. To be prudent, the cliché of ‘all round development’ has become a cacophony.
The Governor in his address has touched upon many areas. Planning and finance, law and order, tribal affairs, education, power reforms, renewable energy, commerce and industries, art and culture, labour, rural development, social welfare and general administration etc. Two key areas are worth probing. One, the state finance has been in doldrums. The growth rate of the economy is expected to gain momentum. This is what the government claims. It should be registered that the growth of the state economy has been a jobless growth. The fate of the vast army of unemployed is skewed to this growth. Two, the law and order, as the government puts it; effective counter insurgency operations alone cannot solve the problems of insurgency in the state. The government has invited UG groups operating in the state to come forward for ‘negotiation’. On the other hand major armed groups of the states have shown no sign of willingness to come forward for talks. It has been a hard – hitting claim for the armed groups that any kind of talk is a trap for them. We hope not to disappoint the governor on his first address. But we leave it to the sense of judgment of our first citizen to witness all round development in his days in Manipur.