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Tipaimukh is one of the thirty one tribal development blocks of the state of Manipur. It lies on the extreme south of Manipur bordering the state of Mizoram and the Cachar district of Assam. The current inhabitants of Tipaimukh are Gangte, Hmar, Kuki, Paite, Lushai and Bengali of whom Hmar are in majority.
At one point of time in history, Aimol, Chiru, Chorei, Koren, Kom, Hrangkhawl ,and Sakechek once lived together with the current inhabitants there for several decades before they finally dispersed in different parts of Manipur, Cachar, Mizoram , and Tripura.
To the local people, Tipaimukh is known as Ruong-le-vai-suo (Ruong=Tuiruong; le=and; vai=Tuivai and suo=meeting point) which means the meeting point or confluence of the two rivers- Tuiruong (Barak) and Tuvai.
During the colonial rule, Tipaimukh was one of the most important strategic bases from which the British military officers sent various expeditions to consolidate their control over Manipur, Mizoram and Assam.
Towards the close of colonial rule and immediate post-colonial period, Tipaimukh witnessed what is popularly known as the Mizo Union movement having the sole objective of merging the Hmar inhabited areas of Tipaimukh with the contiguous areas of Mizoram to form a Mizo district. The issue was once again revived during the heydays of the MNF movement.
But with the signing of Mizo accord in 1986, the Mizo integration issue was once again relegated to the background. Again the peoples struggle for a better economic deal was revived when the issue for the construction of Tipaimukh dam was made public in the 80s. It is at the confluence of Ruonglevaisuo (Tipaimukh) that the Brahmaputra Board (BB), Guwahati and later on the North Eastern Electric Power Construction Ltd (NEEPCO), Shillong, proposes to construct the Tipaimukh High Dam of 390 m. long, 162.8 m high earthen core rock-fill which is one of the biggest dams in India.
Originating from the northern flank of the 1784 m. high peak situated on the east of Senapati district (north), Barak has a long and winding course running towards south, southwest and suddenly taking a U-turn towards north just at the dam site. Several perennial streams drain into Barak upstream of Tipaimukh.
Initially, the Government of Manipur had opposed the construction of the dam on the ground of the seismological and environmental consideration. However, the state legislative assembly unanimously resolved to rescind its earlier resolution to oppose construction of the dam on 15 December,1999 and finally allowed the NEEPCO to go ahead with investigation for a detailed report of the project.
Amidst mixed reactions from the local people and protests by some NGOs, the Government of Manipur and NEEPCO signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 9 January, 2003. Debate and controversy centre on the magnitude of the dam and its possible local impacts. Dam opposers argue that the dam is bound to uproot existing settlements, disrupt the culture and sources of peoples livelihood and degrade environmental resources. On the other hand, pro-dams contend that the dam is expected to make an important and significant contribution to human development and its overall benefits in terms of power, irrigation, navigation, etc, will be considerably great.
In conclusion, the debate will go on forever for there will always be some people who will find happiness in opposing whatever others do and we have to judge by looking at the merits and demerits of the whole issue which undoubtedly will always stand for the development of the region .
If the stand of the dam opposers group is to be taken then there will hardly be any development in any part of the world , leave alone Tipaimukh, if Diamond mining had not taken place in Africa who would recognise Africa ,it is the long forgotten view of the dam opposers faction that in order to develop or progress in this world a State or nation or a province need to harness whatever resources it has in order that the benefits of development are shared equally by those living in the particular area.
For development to take place in a particular area we have to be able to face the dark side of development otherwise we all have to go back to our past where our forefathers lived by hunting and gathering for their daily needs.
A Reader Replies back:
Issac,
The essay you have posted in e-pao is worth reading and shows your progressive outlook. Just opposing every development programme for the
hack of it is unjustifiable. Yes, the dam if built, is going to affect the ecology and environment, but why don't we see the benefits the
construction of the said dam can bring forth.we as a people are too scare venturing into a newer and modern world that we are on the verge of
being obsolete.
We don't have any mineral worth mentioning. We don't have a fertile agricultural land. The forest resources we have are cut down
for jhum cultivation, which by all mean affects the ecology more than the former. Above all jhum cultivation is one of the least productive but
the most labour intensive agricultural process practiced in the whole world.
No doubt it's us who practice it shows our conservative mindset. We can't go on doing what our forefather did, just because we don't want to put
our brain into use. We are one of the most lethargic, easy going and dull people in the world. The road we have are not worth naming road.
But even though I'm in favour of the dam's construction, I foresee gloomy days ahead. We are not going to get the real benefit if we keep going on with
our present mindset. Just count the number of engineers we have or are going to have, the answer is few .
If we can not produce enough engineers and scientists, then we will miss the real action. It will just be like Assam producing the Black Liquid gold for the
last hundred years with out getting the real benefit.
For that to happen we need to change our outlook and create awareness amongst our students. Our pillars of tomorrow need to put their act
together and start burning mid night lamp. Our people have one of the largest number of civil servants with respect to population.
But we didn't get the real benefit, because their only aim was to be an IAS and nothing else.
Being the progressive lot amongst us, they should take keen interest in the society and suggest and frame progressive policies for social upliftment.
Their mind stop working and thought that others are lesser being. Their sole Aim is to corrupt and take all the development scheme into their pocket
realising not that they and their families are also going to share the same infrastructure and amenities.
Sorry for moving away from the main Topic. Anyway that was a good piece of writing, keep it up.
T. Lhungdim ( [email protected] )
Isaac L. Hmar writes regularly to e-pao.net
The author is a research scholar at Dept. of History M.U. and has participated in many Seminars regarding the Tipaimukh Dam.
The writer can be contacted at [email protected]
This article was webcasted on February 17, 2005.
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