'Sangai Festival reduced to gala event for VIPs, bureaucrats'
Source: Hueiyen News Service

Imphal, November 24 2014: Passing through numerous check points with metal detectors, rigorous body search, lining up in long queue and a ticket for Rs 20, these are hardships an ordinary visitor has to encounter while entering the site of the ongoing 10-day Sangai Festival 2014 being organized by Tourism Department at Hapta Kangjeibung, Palace Compound.

Visitors are made to go through rigorous heavy security conducts involving police commando and IRB personnel.

However, VIPs and bureaucrats are exempted from such security measures, prompting visitors to question whether the Sangai Festival is only for VIPs and top government officials.

Over the past few years, the Sangai Festival has been celebrated by Tourism Department to showcase the uniqueness of the shy and gentle Brow-Antlered Deer popularly known as the Sangai Deer which is only found in Manipur at the floating Keibul Lamjao National Park in Loktak Lake and promote tourism and rich culture of the State including its appealing indigenous handicraft and food items.

Passing through numerous check points with metal detectors at the Sangai Festival

To ensure that no untoward incident took place during the festival, large numbers of security personnel are being deployed in and around the venue of the festival.

However, visitors are facing lots of inconveniences from the tight security measures.

Talking to Hueiyen Lanpao, Tenden who came down from Moirang to take a glimpse of the festival said that one has to enter the site of the festival either from Konung Mamang Traffic Point or from Shri Shri Govindajee Temple road on foot after getting a ticket from the counter opened at City Convention Centre at Rs 20 per head.

After passing the entry points, one has to go through several check points with metal detectors installed at different areas.

A separate cabin is also set up for conducting body search only for females.

After completion of the security procedures, another checking is also done at the entrance gate of the festival.

There have been instances where security personnel deployed at the entrance used derogatory words to visitors during frisking, he narrated.

He pointed out that VIPs, bureaucrats and top government officials are allowed to enter with their vehicles up to the entrance gate while visitors are made to line up in long queue that also on the footpath to enter the festival venue.

Stating that visitors lining in long queue are guarded by traffic and police personnel using sticks in unusual manner, he lamented that visitors are allegedly ill-treated as part of security procedure, while VIPs and high ranking government officials are accorded warm welcome by organizers of the festival.

Looking at the indifferent attitude and conduct towards visitors, it would not be wrong to say that the Sangai Festival has been reduced to a kind of festivity specially held for VIPs and top government officials, he exclaimed.

After seeing the festival, visitors have to exit through only one way adjoining the Advanced Hospital.

Then they have to walk taking a long time up to Andro Parking where vehicles park on payment, he said.

Ill-treatment by security personnel who are supposed to guide visitors in the ongoing festival could lead to dwindling of the number of visitors coming to enjoy the festival.

Food items and other products offered in stalls of the festival are sold at skyrocketing prices.

Taking into account such unwarranted conducts in the festival, questions have been raised from various sections that whether the Sangai Festival is being held to save endangered Sangai species and promote tourism of the State or to conduct decent business.