Workshops, skill development and marketing issues
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: April 20 2016 -

Sounds like Manipur, so far quite remote and hardly accessible, and of course underdeveloped, is on the threshold of a new trajectory of economic development.

In line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ambitious Make in India mission, Chief Minister O Ibobi has already initiated a similar campaign known as Make in Manipur.

Yet, connectivity within Manipur and other parts of the country and the world at large is still as poor as it could be.

Thanks to its strategic location, some international financial institutions like the Asian Development Bank have started investing in Manipur particularly in the field of transport infrastructure.

Time and again, Manipur has been projected as India’s gateway to South East Asia and beyond. A gateway with little or no connectivity with the rest of the world.

What a misleading misnomer!

Again, Manipur’s rich potential in tourism sector has been trumpeted every now and then.

Howsoever breathtaking Manipur’s landscapes and how rich its cultural heritage are, tourism will never grow on the soil of Manipur until and unless there is some semblance of modern infrastructure. Entrepreneurship is the new catchword of policy planners sitting in the power corridors of both New Delhi and Imphal.

When one talks about entrepreneurship, two words that strike our minds are ‘skill development’ and ‘innovation’.

But again, skill development and innovation do not come on their own in most cases.

For skill development and innovation to be transformed into reality, infrastructure and inputs are prerequisites.

Basically, entrepreneurship is more about self-employment but for a State like Manipur whose economic infrastructures are literally non-existent, State intervention is crucial.

Ideas are not enough and lip service will never deliver the desired result. It demands a slew of elements, the most fundamental being political will.

It sounds quite impressive that the Federation of Skill Development Organisation (FSDO) has volunteered to take care of all marketing problems with regard to agricultural, horticultural and craft products produced by farmers and artisans of the State.

No doubt, FSDO has been emphasising on skill development but it has not yet bothered to give a clear picture how they would tackle the whole gamut of marketing issues.

‘Skilling India to build India’ was the topic of the workshop which began yesterday at Singjamei Heirangoithong and concluded today at Manipur University.

We are not sure how far the workshop can serve its intended purpose but a quick glance does not reveal much prospects.

Having said this, we don’t have any tendency to undermine the significance of such workshops.

In fact, our comment is driven by our yearning for result-oriented deliberations in place of the usual ones which are generally confined within the realm of academic circles or political honchos or both.

Again, the workshop seemed to have adopted a political hue if the dignitaries who attended the opening session was any indication.

It would be tragic if some people were using the workshop as a platform for garnering political mileage.

Organising such a workshop is indeed a noble job but due care should be taken not to let its purpose and meaning blurred in the mirage of political oneupmanship.

Nonetheless, we hope the workshop would come out with some sound and pragmatic recommendations.

No doubt, the issue of marketing is very important. But first essential physical infrastructure should be put in place and there must be adequate investment.

Then there must be skill development, capacity building etc.

Talking about marketing issues even though it is crucial enough when there is little or no products to be marketed may seem like putting cart before horse.