Govt employees urged to stay away from census
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, August 23 2026: No census related operations will be allowed in areas under the jurisdiction of the Co-Ordinating Committee of Club and Organisations (COCOCO), Imphal East, said the committee's advisor Yumnam Kumar today, warning Government employees against participating in census related exercises.

No census related operations will be allowed in areas under COCOCO, and all Government employees from the areas are encouraged not to take in part any census related exercise.

Those who are found taking part in census exercises shall willingly accept public decisions and bear the responsibility for the consequences, Kumar said.

Speaking to media persons at the committee's office at Langdum Kangjeibung Lampak, Kumar said the National Register of Citizens (NRC) must be updated first in Manipur before any census related exercise is carried out.

The situation in the State is not conducive for census operations.

Hundreds of houses have been destroyed and thousands of people have been displaced in the conflict since May 3, 2023.Conducting houselisting and census when there are no homes and people have been displaced is illogical and devoid of merit, he said.

The committee's president Samjetsabam Meghachandra, who was also present in the press meet, said the NRC must be held only when IDPs have returned to their original homes.

"People aren't against the census.

We are simply asking the Government to conduct it after the NRC," he said.

He said the committee will support the Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation in all its campaigns demanding NRC before the census.

He added that the committee strongly denounces any attempt to threaten or arrest JFD members and undermine the public movement for NRC .

Instead of attempting to undermine the JFD and the movement, the Government must genuinely address the people's aspiration and halt all census related exercises until NRC is updated, he added.

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