Silchar: The Peace Convention on Manipur Crisis that was held on 13th August at Rajiv Bhawan, Silchar, Assam equivocally adopted resolutions that urged upon the central government to restore peace in the state in a given time frame and the conflict in the state of Manipur should not be allowed to continue for long.
The convention which was attended by hundreds of people from the Barak Valley region comprising people of all communities also expressed concern that the Manipur issue will have an ill effect on the Barak region also and that any illegal immigrants should not be allowed to settle in other parts of the country.
The Peace convention at Silchar was organised by KRC Foundation under the aegis of the Barak Manipur Friendship Association (BMFA). Nongin NGO and Lifeline Forever Foundation were actively involved in organising the convention.
A relief material campaign for the displaced people living at relief camps in Manipur began by BMFA with the participation of Assam University Employee Thrift & Credit Society, Lions Club of Silchar Valley, and Meira Paibi organisation of Barak Valley donating materials.
A floral tribute was offered to Bir Tikendrajit on the occasion of Patriots Day by all assembled at the convention.
Biswadeep Gupta, Managing Trustee of KRC foundation while delivering the welcome address highlighted that the purpose of the convention is to sensitise the people so that the real facts can be brought forward, and people’s input is collated so that a resolution can be adopted and shared with all stakeholders. He also appealed to the people of Barak Valley to come forward by donating materials for displaced people staying in the relief camps of Manipur.
A delegation of resource persons from Imphal, Guwahati, Jiribam and Barak Valley were present at the convention to share the facts, and thoughts and identify a way forward. Dr. Potsangbam Dhakeswar, Convenor, Taragi Cheisu gave a presentation at the convention highlighting the facts and figures showcasing the demographic changes taking place in Manipur. He also highlighted various issues that have led to the conflict. Kh. Gojendro Singh, a Human rights activist gave a genesis of the event happening in Manipur and urged the people of Barak Valley to stay united and alert so that in case of any intrusion by miscreants the people could be ready to fight any misadventures.
Yumnam Nabakishore Singha, National Spokesperson of World Meetei Council gave a detailed sequence of events that has led the conflict to take up a violent shape. He passionately urged that the centre should immediately settle the issue and that PM and NEDA Convenor and Assam Chief minister should intervene without any delay.
Dr. A Dinamani, Head, ECE, NIT Manipur gave a very touching speech on how his village is being guarded by volunteers. The suffering and fear psychosis of the people living in the periphery of the hill areas were detailed by him.
Shankar Dey, General Secretary of Silchar Press Club echoed the sentiments of people and added that the peace should be restored by the Government. He said if Defence Minister Rajnath Singh can say that India was capable of taking over PoK then why it is taking time to resolve the crisis in Manipur.
In the convention, it was strongly deliberated that the real issue is the illegal immigrants coming from Myanmar who are highly militarised and that the Government should not in any way negotiate with any insurgent group so that the integrity of the state is not compromised.
Other speakers included Kh. Janaki Devi, Adhyaksha, Jiribam Zilla Parishad, Reena Singh, Manipuri Development Council, Assam, Dr. K.N. Chand Singha, Chairman, Manipuri Language Protection Coordination Committee, Th. Ngouba, Advisor, Manipur People’s Front Guwahati, Yumnam Budhichandra Singh, President, Committee of Forward Club, Imphal, Kamala Kanta Sinha, Silchar, Sanjit Debnath, President UTDC, Silchar, Rupam Nandi Purkastha, advisor ACKHSA, and many representative of civil society and NGOS.
