How did we come to think of a New Social Order among us ?
What has led to the idea of a new social order?
What could be the factors that would make it?

These are some questions that suggest themselves a new thinking as we try to come to grips with the idea of a new social order among the different communities in Manipur today.

Yes, language truly holds a big place as one among the possible factors that could contribute to bringing a new social order in Manipur.

What is the social order in Manipur today?
What is the every day’s life in Manipur today?
Fear, killings, crying/weeping, sleepless nights, frustration, distrust, hopelessness, lawlessness...! Corruption, terrorism, extremism, misguided elements, ... !!

Issue after issue, ban after ban, blockade after blockade, rally after rally...! Social order in Manipur today is extremely bad. These situations call upon us for a new thinking - thinking for a new social order.

What is a new social order?
What do we mean by a new social order?

By new social order, we mean, all communities at par, peaceful co-existence of all, living with mutual trust and understanding, tolerance and respect for each other, equality of opportunity for all and what not.

It is a society without discrimination, corruption and discontentment. It is a society free from socially destructive forces, terrorism, extremism, and misguided elements; a society of confidence, free and without fear.

It is an elevated society, a society on a higher ground with a higher culture and higher tradition of life. To be very short - a new social order is the Kingdom of Heaven on earth.

What is language to the people?
What is language to a native community?
It shall be unfair on our part only to look at the face value and simply conclude that language is a medium of communication. There are many and many more in it. We have to see the language from every side.

Language is an absolutely important and special to a native people/community. It is true that language is the integral part of life of a native people and it is their intimate possession remaining with them not only in their spoken and written words, but also in their thoughts and dreams. It is running through their blood and vein.

Therefore, language is emotionally associated with the native people. It is their identity, privilege and sustenance. It is the God-inspired and most powerful asset of the people - for their advancement and prosperity as a community of mankind, and even to become the master of the whole world and to know all the mystery of God’s creation in the universe.

Language and identity

In the editorial of The Sangai Express, one of the leading Dailies of Imphal of 26th March 2007, it runs thus under the headline The Challenge. “One of the biggest challenges lying before the people of Manipur is the growing rift between the different communities which have been living together for ages.

During the last few years, the growing sense of distrust and animosity between the different communities has been increasing and what we see today are the interests and aspirations of the people being compart-mentalised along different ethnic lines.

In such a scenario it is therefore not surprising to see the different sets of interests and aspirations colliding with each other and pulling the social and political fabric of the State apart. So while the hills have their own set of interest, again seen in the context of ethnic identity, such as the interest of the Nagas and the Kukis and the Paites etc., we have the interests of the Meiteis and the Meitei Pangals in the valley area.

Another phenomenon that is seen with increasing frequency is the coming together of the different tribal communities to oppose what they call to be Meitei chauvinism or dominance. It is this social tension and distrust that could prove to be the ultimate undoing for a place called Manipur...”

The situation described above by the editor was not created over night nor by a single factor. It has a long history. It is a chronic one. It is more a syndrome of diseases than a single disease that could prove to be the ultimate undoing for many States, not only Manipur, particularly in the north­east India, if we neglect to attend to it.

We live in the age of assertion of ideologies. Everyone tries to assert one’s identity - small or big. Every community has their hope, aspiration and dream of climbing to the summit of identity. Language is one of the main ingredients of the so-called identity of a community/people. Emotional attachment with the culture and language is stronger than any thing among the native community.

Therefore, every community is giving importance to their culture and language while asserting themselves as a people/community. Sometimes, or more often, these sort of issues create problems among the people disturbing the peaceful co-existence.

True peace and harmony cannot be achieved without linguistic harmony of the people in the multilingual-States of the northeast - like Manipur which is a unity of 33 tribes of different and distinct languages.

At this situation, we have nothing to blame each other, neither against other communities nor against our leaders. This is happening today because of the short sightedness and wrong policy of the Government during the past 58 years of independence of India. Looking back to it will not help us either. We have to look forward.

The real challenge lying before us today is to bring a new social order among the people of different communities in India, especially in the northeast, and more particularly in Manipur.

Emotional Integrity, Peace and Harmony

We frequently talked about the State integrity of Manipur. State integrity cannot be preserved without emotional integrity of the people. Peace cannot be simply planted instantly and State integrity regained overnight.

We have to build up mutual trust, confidence, and hope, and we have to inculcate a sense of common belongingness, common outlook and common aspiration with a view to having a common future of all the indigenous people, - even with a new system, new tradition and new culture of the people and the Government, especially in the case of the State of Manipur.

It is these system, culture and tradition that would reconstruct emotional integrity and State integrity and bring us a new social order. Rebuilding our emotional integrity, remoulding our common aspiration, and reshaping our common future with a view to achieving a new social order among us require many factors.

Problems of Languages in India

India is a multilingual-nation. There are so many languages and dialects of the indigenous people. India is unity in diversity is more true with the diversed and distinct languages existing in India. However, only a few languages could find places in the language schedule of the Constitution of India popularly known as the Eighth Schedule.

Therefore, there are dis-satisfactions and frustrations among various linguistic communities, especially among the minority communities concerning their languages. Sometimes, it creates issues and problems disturbing the peaceful coexistence and harmony among the people in India.

These sorts of chronic frustration, in the long-run, and when not possible to find a solution, turned out insolvable issues, law and order problems in the country. Even insurgency movements, especially in the northeast, are not ruled out of such issues and problems. Where there is no vision for the future, people resort to the ultimate self determination.

Language Policy - Need of the Hour

Language unites us and language divides us. People speaking one language are united as one community of people. People are divided on the line of language. Different language groups have different views, aspirations and identities. Northeast India is the homelands of diversed ethnic groups - mainly tribes or tribals.

There are hundreds of ethnic communities speaking different languages - all distinct from each other. These languages are not taken care of either by the State Government nor by the Central Government. Therefore, it is imperative that our Central Government adopts a comprehensive language policy to safeguard and promote these languages so that these languages are taken care of by the Government as a matter of National/State policy.

This will bring the linguistic minority communities of India at par with other communities concerning their languages. This will help bring a new social order among the people in India. This will add beauty to India’s unity in diversity.

Coming to the State of Manipur. Manipur is one of the smallest States of India inhabited by 33 tribes speaking different and distinct languages. Meiteilon (Manipuri) is the lingua-franca in Manipur. By any standard, Meiteilon deserves to be the official language of Manipur.

However, it was not without problems both at Delhi and in Manipur. Hills and valley were divided and stood apart on the issue of Meiteilon for being official language of the State of Manipur. Therefore, some sections of hill people rose against the inclusion of Meiteilon in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India.

This disturbed the harmony and peaceful co-existence and created misunderstanding among the people in Manipur. Though, by now, there is no objection/complaint against the status of official language being accorded to Meiteilon, the linguistic minorities including the hill people do not remain content with it. Because they also have hopes, aspirations, and dreams for promoting their languages.

Though Government of Manipur is following a liberal practice about languages, it does not have a specific language policy to safeguard and promote the languages of the linguistic minorities in Manipur. Therefore the State Government is not having ways for taking care of these languages. No plan, no programme, no direction, no budgetary allocation of fund for preservation and promotion of these languages.

In the darkness these languages are left neglected so long by the Government. Here lies a big loophole in the policy of the State Government. It is creating a grave situation wherein inexplicable discontentment was boiling in the minds of the linguistic minority groups in Manipur since the past many years.

Therefore, the need of the hour is a comprehensive language policy for the linguistic minorities in Manipur with a view to equally safeguarding and promoting all the languages. The policy should be enacted by the Parliament or by the State Assembly.

This will keep all the linguistic minorities of Manipur at par in the matter of languages. This will, I believe, bring us a just, fair and equal society, - a society without discrimination, frustration concerning languages. This will help in paving the way for ushering a new social order in Manipur - a society of mutual trust, harmony, and peaceful co-existence among the different communities.

Therefore, I would like to place my point of view that language holds a big place as one among the possible factors that could help in bringing a new social order in Manipur.

And, therefore, with a humble submission, I propose for adopting a State Policy to safeguard and promote the languages of the linguistic minorities in Manipur so that we all go together, grow together and being great together moving toward our common destiny - the glorious future in the warmth of love, mutual trust, and understanding - ushering a new social order among all of us - the people of Manipur.