Manipur groups threaten agitation over border fence issue at Moreh

Protection of Land in Border, Manipur and some other groups including students' organisations have threatened to launch agitations in Manipur to protect Manipur's land which is likely to be usurped once the erection of the border fence is completed.

Talking to journalists Brozendra Ningomba, convener of Protection of land in Border said that people cannot simply accept the oversimplified and misleading statement of Suresh Babu, the principal secretary (Home), Manipur. Mr. Babu who led an official team that visited the two tribal villages and one temple constructed by Tamil Sangam Moreh told journalists that what is being erected is a "security fence" and not border fence.

Mr. Ningomba told The Hindu that it cannot simply be accepted. “If it is a security fence to ward off militants and foreigners trying to sneak into Manipur from Myanmar, then where is the need to bifurcate almost all the 14 tribal villages?”

Besides the Choro village in Ukhrul district will be completely left out to Myanmar side. It has never happened in other parts of India's border - there is no security fence and border fence side by side. Mr. Babu has declined to react to this frontal attack from the NGOs.

Meanwhile the several NGOs have condemned the "misleading statement".

Mr. Ningomba said that the official team seems to have gone there merely to give a stamp of approval to the erection works undertaken by the Border Roads Organisation. All NGOs are demanding suspension of the erection works till a final settlement is brought about. He said that boundary pillars 81, 82, 89 were "missing" only to reappear some time later deep inside Manipur. He said that it was one of the reasons how Manipur's territory is whittled away.

On the other hand, the Manipur unit of the BJP says that state and Union governments had hatched out a conspiracy to gift away Manipur's land to Myanmar through the erection of the border fence deep inside Manipur.

Meanwhile governor Ashwini Kumar and some high officials went to Moreh, the border town on Tuesday. He inspected the erection works of the border fence and visited the Integrated Check Post now under construction at Moreh to upgrade the legalised border trade.