Impact of burning down phumdi-huts: Parents unable to send their children to school
Source: Hueiyen News Service / RC Mangangcha
Imphal, March 16 2013 :
With the State Government resorting to destroying and burning down of phumdi huts in Loktak Lake, fish-farmers who are dependent on the Lake for their daily needs have been deprived of their source of livelihood and a roof over their heads.
An immediate impact of burning down of the phumdi huts, thus rendering the fish-farmers homeless, is, of course, the inability of the parents to send their children to schools for studies.
With nothing left to start a new life all over, Heisnam Premchand and his wife Heisnam Ongbi Bijenti, are today crying over the fate as they have not been able to send their two sons to school.
The couple is among many other fish farmers whose houses have been burnt down by Loktak Development Authority under instruction from the State Government.
Today, they are not in a position to send their two sons, Jenison (15) and Bin Laden (10) to school after their phumdi-hut was burnt down and left homeless ever since.
Speaking to Hueiyen Lanpao, Bijenti said, "When my sons asked me whether they would not be sent to school anymore, I have no word for answering them.
There is nothing I could do but to remain silent with tears in my eyes" .
Bijenti and her husband H Premchand hail from Thanga Heisnam and have been living on their phumdi-hut with fishing as their main profession.
"Earlier, it was quite easy to look after the family and send both the kids to school.
But after our phumdi-hut was destroyed, life for us has come to a standstill", Bijenti added.
Both the husband and wife have now shifted to Langolsabi along with their two sons in search of livelihood.