Matamgi Manipur

A text of the 10th Arambam Somorendro memorial lecture by Pu Lalthlamuong Keivom, the first Indian Foreign Service officer from Manipur on 10th Arambam Somorendra Memorial Lecture held at Lamyanba Sanglewn, Konung Lampak on 10 June 2015). Submitted by Dr Lokendra Arambam (Chairperson, The Arambam Somorendra Trust), E-pao posted this text originally in a five-part series between 11–26 June.  A Foreword from the Arambam Somorendra Trust The Arambam Somorendra Trust is happy to introduce our deeply respected friend, Pu Lalthlamuong Keivom, the first Indian Foreign Service Officer from Manipur and a true son of the soil who shall deliver the 10th the Arambam Somorendra Memorial Lecture. The Arambam Somorendra Trust on its regular mission to commemorate the death Anniversary of the late leader, had made humble efforts to disseminate through such lectures new vistas of information, share perspectives and engender debate amongst well-meaning citizens and neighbours about critical issue

By: Lt. Col. H. Bhuban Singh (Text courtesy: Imphal Free Press 7 June 2015) The following is an article by Lt. Col. H. Bhuban, author of the book “Merger of Manipur”. We are reproducing this article published in the IFP 15 years ago as a homage to the respected ex-Army officer, who was also minister under the Wahengbam Nipamacha Singh MSCP ministry, a state party which is now defunct. The maverick who is also known for his scholarly researches into the history of Manipur of the colonial period,breathed his last recently. There has been a strong notion of recent origin in Manipur that the State became independent from midnight of 15 August 1947, when the suzerainty of His Majesty (of the United Kingdom) over Indian states lapsed and further that this independent status was lost from the noon of 15 October 1949, when Manipur got merged into the erstwhile Dominion of India. There is no denying that Maharaja Bodhchandra Singh was coerced into signing the Merger Agreement after long and

by Pradip Phanjoubam (This article was first published in the Economic and Political Weekly and republished on the Imphal Free Press on 14 June.) Delhi's chest thumping journalists have become mere stenographers of power, forgetting to ask questions and interrogate official narratives. A journalist from Manipur recounts the events leading up to and around the 9 June 2015 “surgical strikes” by the Indian Army against insurgents and explains the event in its contexts. There is something very strange about the ongoing operations against the National Socialist Council of Nagaland, (Khaplang), NSCN-K, and other Northeast militants in the wake of the June 4 devastating ambush on a convoy of the 6-Dogra Regiment which left 18 soldiers dead and 14 more injured. All news of these operations, including the surgical commando strikes deep into Myanmar territory on June 9, emanate from New Delhi and are loudly relayed through the many 24-hour TV channels and columns by Northeast experts based

Dr L Krishnamangol wrote this article for The Sangai Express and Epao reposted it on 1 June 2015 There are many historical turning points in the evolution of the society and state of Manipur since ancient times. We can, therefore, imagine that there was “primitive communism” or primitive communal system in ancient times. And, the primitive communism is the earliest mode of production which is based on the common ownership of the means of production or the resources. This system still continues in some parts of the hill areas of Manipur. And, the system corroborates the empirical experiences/evidences that were found in different parts of the world in ancient times or early period of human civilizations. Coming to the case of Manipur, it is well known that the historical development of the state revealed that Manipur was defeated/conquered by the British in 1891, and that, thereafter, it became a princely state prior to 15th August, 1947.

by Mohendro Nandeibam. This article was originally published by the People's Chronicle ( http://thepeopleschronicle.in ) Big Community Hall and Small Community Life: Can we think of 60 Production-cum Training Centres with Rs. 300 crore within 5 years? Manipur should not and cannot claim a place of honour and respectability in the comity of sister states in the North-East, not to speak in the whole country, as evidently substantiated by the World Bank whose view, is “Non-Development” measured largely by the unchanged composition of products, unchanged factor-combination and unchanged technology. This is the dismal fate after 65 years of economic planning in the country. We could not undertake the exhaustive Investment Planning based on fair calculation of costs and benefits, merits and demerits and short term gains and long term loss. The recent trend of globalization and increasing liberalization has exposed the fundamental weaknesses of structural stagnation.

This article by Nahakpam Aruna originally appeared in Manipuri as one of the chapters titled Houjikki Matamgi Manipuri Warimacha in her book Nongthangleima Amasung Taibang , which was published in 2001. It was abridged and translated by Dhiren A. Sadokpam in 2008. E-pao and Hueiyen Lanpao republished the article in May 2015. The development of Manipuri short story passed through various stages linked by an organic continuum from its conception to the age of maturity and sparks . Despite the resistance to recognition of its contemporary form and the near rejection of the same by established littérateurs and critics, the embryonic genre emerged as a formidable literary corpus acquiring a life of its own. In the twilight of the last millennium, the short story emerged as a potent and mature genre despite its late entry into the varied Manipuri literary traditions. The genre was shaped and chiselled in the early part of twentieth century. With the new education system launched by the Br

This news story and interview was first published by the Imphal Free Press on 14 May 2015 Imphal: Padmashree Heisnam Kanhailal is the founder of the Kalakshetra Manipur, an institute that started the tradition for an alternative theatre and that distinguished the maestro from his peer. He is often described as the man who broke the new trend of theatrical expression in contemporary Indian theatre. Since the inception of Kalakshetra in 1969, he has been continuing experiment with tradition for an alternate theatre. In the process his alternative theatre could be indentified with the live theatre that he ultimately conceived as the ‘theatre of the earth’. Some of his remarkable experiments that redefine the conventional theatrical expression were the Nupilan (women's war against British) in 1978, Sanjennaha (cowherd) in 1979 with villagers at Umathel, a remote village in South Manipur. He also worked with the Paite community in Churachandpur district and produced Thanghou Le

 By Ilana Shapiro Shapiro, Ilana. Theories of Change.  Beyond Intractability. Eds. Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Information Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. Posted: January 2005 < http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/theories-of-change >.      Overview Responding to tensions and violence between ethnic groups around the world, a growing number of non-governmental organizations have developed innovative programs and approaches to help resolve conflicts, prevent violence, and promote more cooperative relationships between groups. Each intervention program identifies and interprets the causes and conditions leading to ethnic conflicts, and sets a unique course that, if followed, should result in powerful change to resolve these conflicts. The diverse approaches they use often seek to address both diffuse tensions and specific conflicts, make short- and long-term changes, and influence those who directly participate in the intervention as well as the lar

This article by Amar Yumnam was originally published by E-pao.net on 5 May 2015. The writer is a professor at Department of Economics, Manipur University. The whole world knows that there is a price tag for every government job in Manipur. It is also known that the government is practically the only employer of people looking for jobs in the formal sector. With the very slow expansion or rather stagnancy for employment opportunities in the informal sector, the job in government is the only hope and aspiration of the people – youths, and parents of the youths. Simultaneously it is also the envy of all those youths and parents of youths who do not have any space in the quantum of employment in the government sector. This has been the reality– governance trajectory and social dynamics - of Manipur for not years, but decades with the quantum reflected in price tags rising without limits.

By Amar Yumnam , Source: Imphal Free Press The North East has come to engage the Indian psyche for sure. This is a very positive fall-out of the Prime Minister’s twin approach emphasising the need for enhancing the relationships with South-East and East Asia and the imperative for evolving a growth momentum for the region. This naturally has had both global and national implications. The neighbouring countries in South East and East Asia are already taking keen interest on the issues, potential and challenges facing the North East. Such an interest by a significant group of countries has naturally to have wider spill-overs. Now the European nations and the countries in North America have started taking more extensive interests in the region than ever before. The national implication is that the administration is hard-pressed to attend to the urgency.