Manipur has since been described in a number of beautiful ways by people mighty in authority and in pen - Indeed, there's no doubt about the reasons for calling her: "a small paradise on earth"!

The happenings that had overtaken her only reminds us of Sir Johnstone who said of her: "You have not heard the last word about Manipur" rings rather prophetic, and indeed, if what the local dailies are carrying as their news items are manifestation of the changes that are taking place, there is no gain saying in not calling her 'an inferno on earth'!

As you look around daily you are accosted with the kind of news items such as chilling killings of all kinds, bandhs and blockades, ethnic centric pressures, and all the rest of it that had become regular features only give a nauseating, and ill-at-easy feeling which are but the sum total effects of "Falling in Love with One's own Image".

In fact, this reminds us of the Greek mythological character named Narcissus, a "most handsome young man who, for spurning the love of the nymph ECHO, was made by Nemesis to be enamoured by the image of himself reflected in the water of a spring".

The comparison between this character and those 'actors' in Manipur who are playing out the role of Narcissus will bear out as we study together and to confirm that after all the contention is rather unfortunately appropriate and not way off the mark. Consider some of the prominent following characters who are playing Narcissi!

Firstly, consider the case of MEELAL, championing the cause of reviving dead scripts of a living language which has already become one of the properties of the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

Out of their zealotry, they have forgotten their first love for safeguarding the integrity Manipur and emotional integration of its people and indulging in rampaging with whatever comes their way within their little whole!

As a matter of reaction to this, their tribal brethren are up in arms against Meiteilon that affects directly on the question of integrity either of the State or of the people!

Their Naga brethren had gone a little further than the others by causing serious disruption in the education system of Manipur and the students swearing oath of allegiance to Nagaland rather than to Manipur that led to an exodus of over 1000 students despite the onslaught of the Quit Notice in Nagaland against a particular tribe from Manipur by the UGs!

By all counts, it is not worth it; and they should rather consider enforcing of their diktat in a more appropriate timing from the College and school standard rather than from the primary as children are already burdened with learning of Manipuri in Bengali, Hindi and English. For the tribals, though they have to use the Roman scripts for their own lingoes, still is a burden.

Secondly, another agency that suffers from acute Narcissism is the UNC which has since been dubbed as 'The Mother of Quit Notices'!

Having gained much experiences of as to how to drive wedges amongst people to people and caused untold miseries, now served Quit Notices to the Government of Manipur itself in various forms such as - Divergence of Government revenue remittances to Nagaland instead of Manipur; fostering amongst the student-community to show their allegiance to some other State than their own, besides trying to influence the outcome of the ensuing 9th Assembly Elections due next year by insisting that they should all swear allegiance to the 'interest of the Nagas and Nagas alone'.

And the latest entry form into such activity is Tipaimukh Dam Project without caring to know what it is all about. It just happens to be sponsored by some Naga organizations with the help of some miscreant Meiteis; this must be supported to irrespective of the stand taken by others and the Government. Ballooning of quantum phalanxes of 29 organizations in the name of an ACTIP cannot stand whimpering by some qualitative pricking of their bloated reasons!

Has the Government of India gone to nuts by trying to execute the Tipaimukh Dam Project at the cost of over Rs 7000 crores without getting essential information on technical proprieties and geological properties of the location, and ecological and environmental effects, and of the attending problems that will accrue for the affected people?

Or are the experts and consultants that the Governments at both levels are so inferior that their knowledge and findings concerning the project deserve to be treated the way they are being attempted to project?

Did the Government of Manipur process it other than the usual legitimate forum of Assembly but send it through a dark alley of underground tunnel to New Delhi? Why this questioning on the so called "lack of transparency"?

Why did the Assembly leave it in the cold but revived again when put to wise and passed through the legitimate process of consultation on the floor of the Honourable House? Is not debate and discussion in the Assembly a case of public debate by the representatives of the people of Manipur?

The really affected people, including their representatives in the Assembly and the local papers have done enough discussion. But then suddenly one of the leaders who are the least affected by it in the ACTIP had a brain wave sensing that the Nagas' eccentricity is being undermined and must be raised on ethnic lines! And they succeeded in having some Meiteis to support them.

What is most objectionable of the commonality of this group is that: "None of them had ever said that Manipur is my own, my country". The Meiteis who honestly tried to broker and be apologists found themselves to be "strange-bed-fellows" with this group in the wake of the people's uprising of 18th June, 2001. What matters here is the "cause" and the "principle one has to die for".

Our Naga brethren have been too much carried away by their ego-eccentricism of calling the shots and bent on doing for the "interest of the Nagas and Nagas alone" to supersede that of any others even at the cost of their own religious tenets of being "good neighbours", "love one another", "whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophet."