Noting the call for 'Actual Population' : Of abnormal growth
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: February 21, 2025 -

‘Actual population needs to be worked out’ and muscled this up with the observation, ‘Census key to address Manipur situation.’

This was former Union Home Secretary GK Pillai at a Delhi do held under the theme, Manipur Ki Baat.

Kya Baat Hai, a Hindi phrase that comes to mind and here it is important to stress on the words ’Actual Population’ for this is where the real, tough job will lie for any attempt to work out the ‘Actual Population’ will necessitate the task of weeding out the illegals, the non-citizens, but who have entered Manipur on the sly down the years.

Manipur is already covered under the Inner Line Permit System and the Government has set 1961 as the base year.

While this is about regulating the inflow of non-locals into the soil of Manipur and not stopping genuine Indian citizens from entering the State, this system rings out loud with the point that anyone entering Manipur after 1961 needs to have the ILP.

In other words this should mean that anyone who has settled in Manipur before 1961 does not need the ILP.

This should bring all to the next question, ‘then how does one detect those who have entered illegally and merged with the local population ?’

This is where the real tough task lies for immigrants from across Myanmar have close filial ties with the Kuki-Chin group of people and with a similar physical appearance and similarity in so many other aspects, merging with the local population has never been much of an obstacle.

The steady inflow of such people on the sly into Manipur can be gauged from the rapid increase in the population of the said community and the multiple increase in the number of villages.

As a young researcher so succinctly pointed out in a two series article which The Sangai Express carried courtesy Ukhrul Times - out of the 32 MLAs in the then Manipur Territorial Council in 1957-62, there were 4 Naga MLAs, 1 Paite MLA and 1 Thadou MLA.

In the first Manipur Territorial Assembly from 1972 to 1973, out of 10 tribal MLAs there were 8 Naga MLAs, 1 Paite MLA and 1 Thadou MLA.

In the first Manipur Legislative Assembly from 1972 to 1973, out of the 60 MLAs, there were 13 Naga MLAs while there were only 6 Kuki-Chin MLAs.

Now the number of Naga MLAs has stabilised at 10 while the number of Kuki-Chin MLAs has shot up from just 2 in the 1960s to 10.

This is the demographic growth of the Kuki-Chin community and common sense says that this could not have been achievable via natural growth.

This is where The Sangai Express would like to once again refer to a write up penned by a certain Paolienlal Haokip back in 2002 in a publication of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies.

It was during the Burmanisation programme of Ne Win in the then Burma in 1967 that thousands of Kukis were driven out and many made their way to Manipur and Mizoram.

Mr Haokip had then put the number of Kukis who entered India at 20,000 and it is still flummoxing to note that the said writer was able to work out their number, even if it was just an approximation.

Now how many of these 20,000 Kukis left Manipur and Mizoram and how many merged with the local population to claim themselves as genuine citizens of the land ?

Many more also made their way into Manipur during the crackdown launched by the military junta in Mynmar in 1988. Cut to 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 and how many have entered the soil of Manipur following the uprising in Myanmar ?

To work out the ‘Actual Population’ of Manipur all these factors need to be taken into consideration and this is where the growing demand for a National Register of Citizens with either 1951 or 1961 as the base year should be noted.

New Delhi has started cracking the whip via the Raj Bhavan, but the all important issue of weeding out the illegal immigrants should not be forgotten.

And the call of GK Pillai on the need to work out the ‘Actual Population’ should be seen against the reality that has been spelt out here.