Officials question Manipur's development mode
Posers expose the grey within
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, December 09 2011: Some top officials of several Government Departments which have been taking key roles in implementing development programmes in the State have questioned the mode of development being witnessed in Manipur.

Talking exclusively to The Sangai Express, these officials departments remarked that outwardly Manipur appears to be striding on the path of development but the reality is that development of Manipur remains an illusion.

On account of the lack of financial discipline and failure to disseminate development funds to the grassroot level, the Centre during the NDA regime sanctioned limited amount of fund to the State.

As a result, people endured severe hardships with the State Government unable to pay salaries to its employees for months.

This woeful state changed for the better when the UPA led by Congress came to power at the Centre.

The UPA Government started sanctioning funds for both Plan and Non-Plan heads quite generously.

Despite its low resources, the State Government enhanced Non-Plan expenditure for its resource mobilisation.

This convinced the UPA Government to sanction more funds for the State under the Non-Plan head.

The High Court complex inaugurated recently

However, the SPF Government has been unable to release the State's share of the Non-Plan amount, implying that whatever expenditure being made by the State Government is from the fund sanctioned by the Centre.

Likewise, the annual plan outlay of the State also saw a quantum jump under the benevolence of the UPA Government.

The plan outlay (including cost of major projects) for the fiscal 2009-10 was Rs 2000 crores.

This was increased to Rs 2600 crores in 2010-11 .

The plan outlay for the current fiscal 2011-12 is Rs 3210 crores.

Notwithstanding this phenomenal increase in the annual Plan and Non-Plan amounts of the State, it would be misplaced to say that the State has established financial discipline.

The funds sanctioned by the Centre could not reach the grassroots level to the desired level till date.

It was during the regime of the incumbent SPF Government that many major projects like Capital Project, ISBT, City Convention Centre, NT Flyover Bridge, multi-storeyed Khwairamband market-sheds etc have been/are being implemented in addition to witnessing multiple growth on the number of expensive and fancy cars on the roads of Imphal.

But this does not mean economy of the State has boomed.

Questioning if the State has any productive base and highlighting the condition of peasants, the officials emphasised on the need to examine whether benefits of several welfare schemes taken up by the Government have reached their targeted sections.

Notwithstanding the huge amounts of fund sanctioned by the Centre, there were many instances when retaining walls of rivers constructed by IFCD collapsed even before they were completed or just after they were completed.

People are yet to reap any worthwhile benefits of Khuga Dam.

When the State Government was rejoicing over the Prime Minister's declaration that development work of Imphal-Jiribam highway can be completed by 2013, it was questionable if there would be no need for further development of roads and highways, the officials stated.

Pointing out that the two National Highways (Imphal-Dimapur highway and Imphal-Jiribam highway) are not worth their names till date, the officials questioned the rationale of demanding a new National Highway.

There is no sign of the State Government doing anything substantial to create and generate the State's resources when the Centre has been making generous allotment of funds to the State.

The State has been making little planning to set up small and medium scale industries in Manipur.

In case, a non-Congress Government is set up at the Centre, all the illusions would vanish and Manipur would revert back to the old days characterised by acute financial crunch, the officials cautioned.