‘Nong-na wa wa churakle, Imagi Langlen Tumtharone’ (the rain is falling steadily, my daughter, my precious go to sweet slumber). This is an evergreen melodious song of Kamala Devi, penned by the famous lyricist B Jayanta Kumar Sharma. A steady rainfall, a torrent of showers in night with no threat of flood might be a lullaby for childing mothers. In films rain is often welcomed with songs and dances. In poems, poets have seen the thundering clouds of July night as a manifestation of God.

But on the night of Sept 7th, there was no lyrical in the rhythm and there was not a slight taste of lullaby in the torrent rain. Instead, every mother in every house along the banks of the Imphal, Iril and Kongba river, with every drop of rain falling on their roofs, they kept their children on alert, they kept on saying to their children to pack up their belongings, to put things on the mantelpiece for safety. The menfolk kept vigil on the embankment of the rivers with torches, lanterns, loudspeakers to keep alert for any eventuality with the rising water level. The whole Imphal valley, the whole valley of Manipur was on alert during the past two nights and two days.

At the beginning period of South-west monsoon in April-May this year, Manipur is blessed with early monsoon. With good, moderate and regular rainfall visiting their paddy fields, the village folks regained their smile on their faces with the prospect of a good harvest this year. Sowing of paddy seeds, transplantation of the paddy saplings had been completed in advance this year as compared to the past many years. From the poor cultivator to the Agriculture Minister it is expected and also estimated that this year 2007 will be one of the best year for agricultural activities.

Their hopes thrashed on the walls with the coming of the September month, as the villagers see their green paddy plants, pregnant at the belly, ready to bring forth flowers reluctantly goes down under the flood water and for thousands and thousands of villagers, their hopes are also gone as everyone knows in its stage of flowering, flood means total ravages on the paddy plant.

In the months of September and October, the South-west monsoon is in its return journey. There is always some amount of fear hanging in the minds of the people of Manipur about flood. An overdose of rain will make it sufficient to flood as the rivers are already half filled with water. And from the past many years people talk about ‘Langban Ekhomba’ or ‘Mera Nga-eenba’ floods.

This year, it’s happening. On its way back home, the South-west monsoon strides boldly in. It did not fail to smite the people of Manipur with flood and landslides.

On closely following the track of the rainfall in the State, at the beginning of this month clouds floating here and there above the valley with small showers and drizzles. On the 4th September, the day of Janmasthami, the breezy shower seemed to come to wash the sin of the devotees who came to seek the blessings of Lord Krishna. On the 5th, the rain continued with more vigour. The dance of monsoon was becoming more and more from ‘Ras Leela’ to ‘Tandap’ dance. The faces of the villagers grew grimmer and grimmer with the news and talks of rising water level in the rivers, prediction of more rain in the coming days. On the 7th, news of breaching of river banks in the southern part of Manipur, with the news of lost of human lives and on the 8th the news of breaching the embankments of Imphal river at Thongju and overflowing of Kongba at different places. The whole of Imphal city now is encircled by the waters from the Imphal, Iril, Nambol and Kongba rivers.

It is a cause of concern for us all in the sense that, only a week’s rain had enough havoc for us. On the 2nd September, the water level in the Imphal and Iril river was far below down just some two or three metres above from the centre bed of the river. Even children play cricket on the bank of the Imphal river in Tellipati area, but after 72 hrs or so it became so violent. It is also the same for the Iril river also. These rivers like enormous serpents swallowed all in the bank in its way and at the same time broke lose submerging, villages, paddy-field, cornfields and fish farms. In such short span of hours, we have nothing to do but to watch the rising level of water in awe at the destructive power of mother nature.

As we go on from our cradles to our graves, we have witnessed many changes that have taken place around us before our eyes. The once green hills and mountain ranges turn bare now. Many cries have been made about the soil erosion. But these cries have not borne the fruit till now. The mode of rainfall in Manipur is unpredictable and uncertain for the last two or three decades. Drought and flood have been playing their game of hide and seek in turn for the past-many years.

A dry spell of two or three months makes the scarcity of water everywhere in the State. Even some turbines of the Loktak Hydro Electric project have to be rested due to want of water. And again a few days rain brings more water in the lake to submerge the surroundings as it happens today.

Yes, men, proud of their achievement in the field of Science and Technology cannot predict the destructive behaviour of Nature in the form of earthquake, cyclone etc. Flood of large scale is beyond the control of man. So the pain and shock of the recent flood be compensated in the hope that this flood have drained away the dirts and garbages that are piling on the banks specially on the bank of Nambul river.