It is said 9/11 has changed the world and the birth of a new patriotism has taken place. So many things like the Clash of Civilization theory, bin Laden, the Daisycutter etc. have come up to the forefront of our everyday living.The loss of national innocence has taken place long before in Manipur than in the United States. However Manipur still remains the same as before. Gun culture has penetrated deep into our pshyche and we are living in a civilization devoid of culture, discipline and values.

What has affected our society is clearly visible to the naked eye but still we fail to bring about a solution for a change. Every aspect of Manipuri life, be it economy, polity, morality, education , fashion etc. is tinged with dark patches borrowed and copied from an outside world without the necessary skills to adjust itself to the conditions in Manipur. A recent news which is bringing shivers down our spines is that two proffessors of Manipur University have been shot in the leg by an underground group for tampering of marks in the MCA entrance examination of Manipur University. It is rather surprising to learn that such a thing happens in a place of the epitome of learning.A university stands for humanism and what we read about is a sound bite to learn. Good news; isn't it? Such incidents are just symptoms of a decaying society where human civilization has reached its nadir.A society's level of development can be gauged from from the developments taking place in its academia.

Today the education system in Manipur is almost a rotten one. The system needs to be changed and totally revamped.A slow yet drastic revolution must take place if we are to save our nation.We are turned a people used to lying because it helps us survive in this cookie-cutter world. We are used to keeping ourselves in the dark about all those shady deals taking place in the dark.Some years ago, a band of recruited yet unposted Manipur Riflesmen carried on strikes, bandhs , gheraos because they were not being posted even when each and everyone of them had given around Rs. 40,000 for the post of a constable.Isn't it amazing to hear such a thing? Their parents had worked days and nights to earn such a sum and the money is being swallowed down the throats of our politicians and bureaucrates in one gulp. Isn't it a shameful thing to remain silent when such things happen?

Now corruption and nepotism have entered into our blood and bone marrows and they are eating our bowels . We are on the brink of a total collapse never to stand up on our legs again. Some sections of our Naga brethen are playing dice with our neo-colonial Indian politicians and the stacks are high. Most leaders seem to be careless about it while it is quite clear to us that one day we may become slaves of our neo-colonial rulers.Our employees in the education department are also fairly paid if we compare their lot to that of the common people. We wonder why those teachers wanted extra bucks.Such incidents also take place from time to time in regular intervals. I cannot say whether the act of the underground group is just or right but it is a big irony to reflect on myself why and what prompted these two Proffessors to indulge themselves in such a silly game. What kind of education is being given to our youngsters by such people? They may have been lured by the money but why does it take so long a time to unearth such an act of injustice.

I believe most people know it well that such and such deals take place in the dark but are afraid to reveal or are used to remaim silent because in the end they would become victims of the system as a whole.It is high time we cleanse ourselves of all such dirty things. The immediate future is not very bright yet we should not stop to strive for attaining this cherished goal of our honest countrymen. Let sanity return again to this money-poor land. It is not too late for a change although it may take some time. Unless we work ourselves upto that end in view Manipur may slowly become a Cambodia of Pol Pot's regime.Common people like me are fed up with violence, killings, hatred and we yearn f or a day when we can live in peace using the powers of our conscience. Now as the Assembly elections become nearer political activity has increased and our power loving politicians are hungry for a lost status. May God give them enough sunshine for doing legislation in the open. May not rain disturb them. The gutted Assembly building should be kept in this state as a souvenir of our vibrant democracy. It should be turned into a tourist spot so that every Manipuri remembers it as a symbol of political conscience and anarchy. Let the devastated structure become a lesson for our young people.

Those good old days are over when we saw Kalashnikovs in the Hollywood action movies only but now they have become part of our daily bread. Even an infant cannot be put to sleep without hearing a gunshot in the nearby surrounding. For every one step forward Manipur is taking two steps backward. Isn't it a clear sign of development, a development of all the negative traits in a society? The common people are being baked on the oven of a hostile Indian Army and paramilitary forces while another parallel government is ruling us from the dark. Double taxation has taken away the hearths from our poverty stricken homes. Isn't it time we pray for a change towards peace and stability, progress and development?

Why should the common people suffer for no fault of their own? Today Manipur needs a Hitler, the Fuhrer. Our politicians are like dogs that have long tails without the strenth to manage or carry them properly. So they often end up finding themselves trapped in the bushfires they have lit to destroy others. Even after half a century of gaining independence from British colonial rule no concrete change has taken place as it ought to. We wonder how are our politicians masking themselves by playing good rhetoric. Or is it because Manipur was wedded to India as an unwilling bride in 1949 that we cannot catch up with the rest of the country in the level of its development?

We cannot remake our history although we can rewrite it.E. H. Carr has rightly said ,"History is an enormous jig-jaw with a lot of missing puzzles." So instead of instilling in our youths a lot of fundamentalist doctrines of the past they should be led to lead organised lives based on discipline and duty.

The next generation of Manipuris is totally destroyed if we go on doing and thinking on the lines as is done now.Abrahm Lincoln has rightly said, "You cannot help men permanently by doinng for them what they could and should do for themselves." So it is high time each one of us respond to the call of duty for our motherland and serve our fellow men so that peaceful co-existence and harmony prevail among us without referring ourselves to religious sects, castes, tribes etc. as one whole humanity.

By
Vikram Nongmaithem
Kakching Mayai Leikai, Kakching