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KKL asserted that it would be wrong on the part of both the Nagas and the Kukis to consider the Meetei community as their common enemy

TFM Desk

Reacting sharply to the objections raised by the United Naga Council (UNC) and the Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM) on the Manipur High Court’s directive to the Government of Manipur to send its recommendations for the inclusion of the Meetei Community in the Scheduled List of the Tribes of India to the Government of India authorities, the Kangleipak Kanba Lup (KKL) stated that it was placing certain facts on record.

KKL, an oragnaisation said that the Meeteis are demanding the inclusion of the Meetei in the Scheduled list of Tribes under the Constitution of India is not aimed at grabbing jobs either from the Naga or Kuki communities of Manipur but to safeguard their “little bit of land now confined to less that 2000 square kilometers out of the 20,000 square kilometers of the entire State”. “They need not fear about grabbing their job reservation quotas currently enforced in Manipur which will remain status quo. And if any job opportunity should arise it will be on an All India basis where the Meities will be competeing with other advanced tribes of India like the Bheels for instance. The UNC and KIM have no birth right to deny any other scheduled tribes of India that job opportunity should be denied to them”, said the KKL statement issued by its secretary Ngamkheingakpa Luwang.

KKL pointed out that both the Naga and Kuki Communities of Manipur are at liberty to condemn the Manipur High Court for giving the directive to the Manipur Government to that effect and that they may also condemn the Governments of Manipur as well as India if it goes through or “even takes up arms against the Centre for the making classification forming a Joint Kuki-Naga Front”.

“To the UNC we would like to reiterate that the Manipuri Language being classified as scheduled language of the Country under the Eight Schedule has nothing to do with the classification of the Meeteis as a scheduled tribe of India. Anyway Manipuri language is not confined to the Meeteis only but serves as a Ligua Franca amongst all the tribal communities of Manipur, be it between the Nagas and the Kukis but amongst their various sub-tribes also”, pointed out KKL.

The organisation said that it should be borne in mind as to what is happening in neighbouring Assam. The Assamese Language has been in the Eight Schedule of the Constitution since its adoption in 1950. But recently both the Assam Government as well as the Centre have agreed on the demand of the inclusion of the Ahom Tais, a community amongst the Assamese speaking population of Assam. Also the inclusion of the Ahom Tais as a Scheduled Tribe of India is on the agenda of the talks between the Arbinda Rajkhoha led United Liberation Front of Ahom (ULFA), said KKL,

“Coming to the UNC, we would like to remind our Naga brethrens to remember the words of the venerable Ava Koser Thiungaleng Muivah that only the Nagas and the Meeteis are the indigenous peoples of Manipur. So what is the idea of joining hands with the Kukis to block the way for the survival of the Meeteis under the Indian Constitution.You seemed to have bury the hatchet of the Naga-Kuki conflict between 1992 -1994 where over 1000 were killed on both sides and thousands rendered homeless and hundreds of houses were burnt. The Meetei seems to be the common enemy of both the former warring sides”, pointed out KKL

The Meetei organisation also reminded the Tangkhul “brethrens” of the folklore that the Tangkhuls considers the Meeteis as their younger brother and that on the day of the Coronation the Meetei King adorns the dress of a Tangkhul and no Meetei wedding is complete without a Tangkhul Lerum fee or cloth. And no Meetei Laiharaoba is complete without the appearance of the Tangkhul saba and is a sine quo non. And there is still the living custom of the Meetei King, titular or otherwise visiting Hundung Village in Ukhrul to meet his elder brother the Chief of Hundung Village, called Parihanba. “And thus why should the elder brother object to the younger brother getting protection of his land and culture as a scheduled tribe of India”, asks KKL.

To the question of Meeteis being more advanced than the other tribal communities of Manipur, KKL said it had nothing to do with genealogy but it is because of the Mode of Production. The Meeteis followed settled agriculture so that they have more time to concentrate on arts, culture and literature while the many other tribal communities hitherto used to follow slash and burn agriculture before switching to poppy plantation by some of them which will make them all become rich, said KKL .

KKL asserted that it would be wrong on the part of both the Nagas and the Kukis to consider the Meetei community as their common enemy or “else will be constrained to oppose every move or demand made by any tribal group either Naga or Kuki”

The post KKL rubbishes UNC, KIM positions on ST demand by Meeteis first appeared on The Frontier Manipur.

So far, an amount of Rs 16.86 crore has been released by this Ministry to the Government of Manipur which includes an amount of Rs 428 lakh released during the year 2018-19. No proposal was received from the State from FY 2019-20 to 2022-23.

TFM Report

An amount of Rs 16.86 crore had been released by the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change to the Government of Manipur which includes an amount of Rs 428 lakh released during the year 2018-19. Further, the Integrated Management Plan (IMP) prepared by LDA has been examined by IIT Roorkee and certain suggestions have been given. The Ministry has asked the LDA to submit a revised plan addressing all issues related to conservation of Loktak Lake for endorsement of the Ministry for its implementation.

According to a reliable source, Bhupender Yadav, the Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change while talking about three major issues on Loktak Lake Ecosystem and suggested measures for delisting from Montreux Record is reported to have stated that the Loktak Lake is an integral part of the culture and ecology of Manipur. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been very clear that India is land where nature is worshipped and therefore our scared natural resources will be protected and preserved at all costs. So, the government remains committed to developing Loktak Lake as one of the most enchanting and magnificent lakes of the world with community engagement and collective efforts.

According to sources, he said that the the Loktak Lake was included in the Montreux Record in 1993 as a result of ecological problems such as deforestation in catchment area, siltation, infestation of water hyacinth and paragrass and pollution.

The three major issues resulting in listing of Loktak Lake in Montreux Records are:

Changes in water regimes which have triggered phumdi proliferation, water quality deterioration, loss of migratory fish and degradation of KLNP habitat
Pollution from upstream areas which led to water quality degradation and accelerated phumdi proliferation
Conversion of natural phumdi into fish farms which reduced the capacity of Loktak to moderate and buffer water regimes

The Government of Manipur has been advised to submit an action plan to mitigate these issues along with a timeline for removal of Loktak Lake from the Montreux Records. The Ramsar Information Sheet (RIS) of Loktak Lake is to be updated on priority basis by compiler / Loktak Development Authority (LDA), for which they have been duly advised by the Ministry.

On what are the measures taken up to control eutrophication and control of discharge of waste water from urban into the Loktak Lake, the minister said that his department has been providing financial assistance for this wetland since 1988-89 to the Government of Manipur for undertaking conservation activities like survey & demarcation, catchment area treatment, fisheries development, removal of phumdis, constructing water harvesting structures, small scale engineering works, creation of education and awareness etc.

The Loktak Development Authority, Department of Forests, Govt. of Manipur is the implementing agency. So far, an amount of Rs 16.86 crore has been released by this Ministry to the Government of Manipur which includes an amount of Rs 428 lakh released during the year 2018-19. Further, the Integrated Management Plan (IMP) prepared by LDA has been examined by IIT Roorkee and certain suggestions have been given. The Ministry has asked the LDA to submit a revised plan addressing all issues related to conservation of Loktak Lake for endorsement of the Ministry for its implementation.

On measures for upliftment of livelihood or alternative livelihoods of the wetland people, Bhupender Yadav informed that as per the information provided by Government of Manipur, LDA has been taking up certain livelihood development activities for local communities who are dependent on Loktak Lake. The government, giving shape to Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji’s vision of conserving our Amrit Dharohar, also intends to enhance livelihood opportunities of the local communities through developing eco-tourism infrastructure in and around the lake and need-based capacity building of local communities.

The integrated Management Plan prepared by the LDA envisages activities on ‘Sustainable Resource Development and Livelihoods’ that includes:

Community Managed Fisheries Strategy for Loktak aligned with FAO code of conduct of Responsible Fisheries
Enhancement of fish seed production
Development of harvest, post-harvest and marketing infrastructure
Community livelihoods (micro enterprises) programme
Development of Wetland linked Cultural heritage sites to promote tourism for diversification and value addition of existing fisheries based livelihoods
Eco guide training for local communities

When asked if there is any judicious water allocation policy for biodiversity service, for fishers, for agriculture, for hydropower etc at Loktak, the minister informed that MoEF&CC has already taken up the issue of Ithai Barrage operation with the Ministry of Power and NHPC. After due deliberation, NHPC has agreed to lower the water level of Ithai barrage gradually to the drawdown level in the forthcoming winter season starting from November 2023 to rejuvenate KLNP habitat as per the technical report of 2011. With lowering of water levels in winters, the park habitat will improve along with improved circulation and flushing in the wetland.

On the timeframe for any steps taken to protect Loktak from inflow of waste (brought down by river/streams flowing) into Loktak, Bhupender Yadav said that as informed by the State Government of Manipur, commissioning of Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) and implementation of activities as envisaged in the Integrated Management Plan will substantially reduce loading of pollutants into the lake. The State Government has also commissioned the construction of STPs at Nambul with the financial assistance of Rs 100 crore provided under the NRCP scheme by NRCD for the effective functioning of existing waste management infrastructure. It will be commissioned by June 2023 to capture and treat waste from Imphal City and Nambul River and take care of the discharge of untreated sewage into Loktak.

On the long term plan to protect the lake from encroachment (when govt removing private farms along Mayang Imphal-Toubul road & lake), the minister Bhupender Yadav said that MoEF&CC has suggested the Government of Manipur to immediately submit an action plan along with a timeline and a map with clear demarcation of the wetland boundary following guidelines provided by MoEF&CC and as per provisions laid by the Ramsar Secretariat for removal of Loktak Lake from Montreux Record. The Ramsar Information Sheet (RIS) of Loktak is to be updated on priority basis by the LDA.

He also said that Loktak Lake in Manipur was designated as Ramsar site on 23.03.1990 under Ramsar Convention and being a Ramsar site, the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 are applicable to the lake. A brief document of the lake has already been prepared. RIS itself is a kind of brief document.

On what is the responsibility of National Hydroelectric Power Corporation Limited (NHPC) towards Rehabilitation and Resettlement of displaced communities affected by the Loktak hydroelectric power project since 1983?

Bhupender Yadav said that Loktak Hydroelectric Project was implemented before the EIA notification 1994 and 2006. Therefore, Environment Clearance of the Project was not applicable for the construction of the project. Works on the project commenced in 1971. The project was commissioned in year 1983.

NHPC has informed that for construction of Loktak project 217.09 ha of private land altogether had been purchased from landowners of 11 villages at different sites of the project. Full compensation was paid to land owners before land possession. Hence, Rehabilitation and Resettlement was not applicable at that time.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change has been providing financial assistance for this wetland since 1988-89 to the Government of Manipur for undertaking conservation activities like survey & demarcation, catchment area treatment, fisheries development, removal of Phumdis, constructing water harvesting structures, small scale engineering works, creation of education & awareness etc. Loktak Development Authority, Department of Forests, Govt. of Manipur is the implementing agency. So far, an amount of Rs 16.86 crore has been released by this Ministry to the Government of Manipur which includes an amount of Rs 428 lakh released during the year 2018-19. No proposal was received from the State from FY 2019-20 to 2022-23.

However, an Integrated Management Plan (IMP) of Loktak Lake was received in the Ministry for endorsement. The plan envisages to put in place Manipur River Basin scale actions, such as conserving catchment to control silt, abating pollution generated from upstream cities, demarcating wetland boundaries, managing water regimes and supporting livelihoods diversification of wetland dependent communities. IMP includes core and non-core activities in the lake area and its zone of influence (catchment, command areas, etc.). The IMP was appraised through IIT-Roorkee and observations given by IIT-R had been sent to the Govt. Of Manipur for revision of the IMP. The revised proposal is yet to be received by the Ministry. The MoEF&CC will consider the proposal on priority as per the cost sharing formula between the Central and State Government and the funding norms of NPCA.

On plans to accommodate the fishing community in lake management plan, the minister said the State Government of Manipur has informed that community Managed Fisheries Strategy for Loktak aligned with FAO code of conduct of Responsible Fisheries will be formulated involving local fishing communities.

Fishing in Loktak Lake has been carried out since time immemorial. The fishermen are an integral part of the Loktak ecosystem. The state government is working to promote healthy capture fisheries, which ensures that ecosystem processes such as migration pathways, water quality and phumdi distribution are not adversely affected.

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change had earlier stated that any effort towards the effective management of Loktek Lake, which is a designated Ramsar site, shall be in line with the norms of Ramsar Convention as well as Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017.

Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Ashini Kumar Choubey said this while answering questions related to Loktak Lake raised by Janata Dal (United) Member of Parliament Anil Hegde on the floor of Rajya Sabha on April 6.

On that day, he also said that as per the information provided by Government of Manipur, approval from Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance for the proposed ‘Sustainable Loktak Lake Ecosystem Restoration, Eco Tourism and Livelihood Improvement’ project has not been received so far.

The post Loktak Lake: Ministry asks LDA to submit revised plan addressing all issues first appeared on The Frontier Manipur.