Dirty toilets, unhygienic ice creams... Abdicating its duties
- Sangai Express Editorial :: August 02, 2013 -

Abdicating its duties. Written in bold in three recent incidents that made it to the front page of The Sangai Express.

First was the detection of primary school teachers being deputed to teach students at a higher secondary school, second was the report of students of DM College demolishing the toilets of the institution, obviously in protest against its unhygienic and dirty state and the third was the detection of ice cream manufacturing units utilising untreated, dirty water.

A clear reflection that the Government has abysmally failed in addressing issues as basic as posting/deputing the right teachers at schools, keeping toilets and other infrastructure such as canteens clean and hygienic in educational institutions and of course totally blind or indifferent to the sub-standard, unhygienic edibles that are being churned out by dubious manufacturing units.

And when the Government abdicate its duties, then the natural follow up is for civil society organisations and student activists to rise and fill the vacuum.

Anarchy is the result, creating a situation where anyone can take decisions and issue diktats, such as closing down a manufacturing unit or students demolishing structures inside their educational campus.

These three instances should be more than indicative that the Government has flopped miserably.

On the other hand it could mean that the Government is only interested in taking up works or paying attention to issues which involve financial transactions.

Damn the other basic and fundamental duties which have nothing to do with money or does not need the procedure of granting or awarding contract and supply works.

A Government which keeps its wheels churning on the axle of contracts and supply works is bound to overlook something as basic and fundamental as keeping the toilets of educational institutions clean and hygienic, depute or post the right teachers to the right schools and keep a tab on manufacturing units.

The three instances which have been cited here may appear mundane and of course will not shake the Government, but the casual approach to something as basic and fundamental as ensuring clean and hygienic toilets for college students, says something profound about the rot in the mindset of the people lording over the affairs of the State.

A 5 Star hotel sounds great, but it is not needed in a place where people receive power supply for only 7 to 8 hours in a day.

The City Convention Centre looks awesome and is a landmark but what is its need when the Government is still not able to open it to the public after the much hyped inauguration ?

The Inter-State Bus Terminus is needed, no doubt, but the fact that it has been turned into some sort of a public toilet after its inauguration is a clear demonstration of the Government’s right hand not knowing what its right hand is doing.

Prioritise things. This is the essence of governance.

Unfortunate for the people that this concept does not exist in the lexicon of the present dispensation. Get down to the basics and the larger, grander schemes will fall into place. This is a given.

So while the Government is talking tall about putting Manipur on the road of development, students continue to cope with sub-standard, unhygienic, filthy toilets.

In the name of ensuring admission to all students in specific educational institutions, the Government does not bat an eyelid in posting or deputing any teacher to cope with the increased number of students and it cannot get more farcical than this.

Time for the Government to pull up its socks and see where its priorities should lie.

What line of action will the Government take, now that two ice cream manufacturing units have been found using untreated and unhygienic water ?

It will be interesting to see how things unfold in the coming days.