Everybody knows the Government of Manipur is corrupt, corruptible, and incompetent and lacks commitment. But this does not mean that we should be displaying these qualities wherever and whenever the State Government requires its presence to be shown.

Internally: Imphal in particular, and Manipur in general, was once considered to be a clean and quiet place. But now it is as if it never was. Further the forests in Manipur conveyed a place rich in environmental quality and Godly in solicitude. But it is already history. If one moves from Imphal to any direction for one hour the absolute degradation in forests would be easily evident.

The evidence is much more painful if one takes an aerial view of Manipur. Manipur now looks very dry if one looks from the air. This is in sharp contrast to the green and dark look the State portrayed hardly two decades back. Our forests have disappeared fast despite the Government and her department of forests.

Now let us narrow down this view to the capital of the State. Imphal is both political and commercial capital of the State. Besides it is a historical city as well. We have all the seats of Government power in the heart of the city. We also have the various agencies responsible for governance of the city. These being so, it should display dynamics of growth different from other cities elsewhere. But the opposite is the case.

The absolute failure of city governance is exemplified by the conversion of Nupi Keithel construction into a law and order problem due to the lackadaisical progress in construction by the State Government. Despite all the agencies and the money received from the Central Government for urban maintenance and growth, streets are virtually non-existent in the city. Every passage is a garbage pit.

All the streets-turned-garbage pits in Imphal are within two kilometres of the residence of the Chief Minister and the office of the municipality council.

This image is the first impression one gathers immediately on landing in Imphal, and the State government seems to be ‘duly pleased’ with this projection. The culture of non-maintenance of the mountainous roads has now reached the heart of the State capital – a wonderful geometric progression indeed.

Externally: The innate quality cannot be concealed for long; it would definitely get manifested outside sooner or later. But in the case of the Manipur government it has come out sooner than later.

The Government of India has been magnanimous enough to name a lane in Delhi Bir Tikendrajit Marg in honour of the Prince who sacrificed his life ‘for his land and people’. But the State Government has so brazenly compromised with the reputation of the Prince and the dignity of Manipur.

Manipur has a Bhavan in this very lane named after the Prince. Yes I am talking of the Bir Tikendrajit Bhavan of Manipur in Bir Tikendrajit Marg in Chanyakyapuri in New Delhi.

To begin with the bhavan does not possess any character in its architectural design; it is an insult to the history of civilisation of Manipur and a shame on the many qualified architects the government has on its rolls. The number of rooms does not even show any acknowledgement of the high mobility of the people of Manipur.

It was inaugurated in December 2001 or the building is only half a decade old. But look at the condition and facilities in this infant building – they are but crumbling. The building is now so dirty and non-maintained that it is but a replica of the streets-turned-garbage pits in Imphal being displayed in Delhi. Our dirt and non-maintenance are of export quality and, in fact, are being exported now. This is what the State government has done to us.

The story does not end here. We have a statue of the Prince in the campus of the bhavan unveiled by the honourable Chief Minister in August 2006, i.e., less than a year ago.

But the little paint around the statue has already come out in this short period of less than a year giving a look of unhealed septic wounds. In other words, the Government of Manipur has disgraced the Prince of the proud Manipur nation by whatever it does in the Bir Tikendrajit Marg in Chanyakyapuri in New Delhi. In doing so it has compromised with the dignity and pride of the nation.

In fine: By now we know pretty well that there is no point in blaming this shameless government; it does not have an eye or ear or even a thinking head. But we would not mind to fall to their feet to beg for at least not to play with the dignity and prestige of our land, people and nation away from home.

We sincerely beg for at least this mercy on the people, and for the rest they can continue to be as corrupt as ever.