Morning cuppa just not the same sans newspapers: Elderly folks
Source: The Sangai Express / Mungchan Zimik

Ukhrul, March 30 2022: Unavailability of newspapers in Ukhrul for nearly two years has upset the old folks as they are unhandy with modem gadgets and depend largely on printed publication to get information about the happenings of the State and beyond.

When this Correspondent interacted with five pensioners from Ukhrul town, they all said that relying only on radio and television to remain informed of the current events in Manipur is incomplete without newspapers.

Even though the Covid situation has improved considerably in the State, no shops in Ukhrul town are willing to resume distribution of newspapers due to certain factors.

A 72 year old person, Z Athing said that earlier reading newspapers and analysing the news and analysis with friends was very educational and eye opening.

However those things now seem like days of yore, he med.

Spending morning hours without newspapers is like eating a special curry without salt, Athing added.

Another senior citizen L Vasha said that his relatives in Imphal send him newspapers on a weekly basis seeing his keen interest in reading and analysing the newspapers.

Ukhrul and Kamjong are the home of the Tangkhul community which have more than 2 lakh population.

The district has no vernacular news publication now as "The Aja Daily" stopped publication since last year.

There is also no newspaper publication in Tangkhul dialect, which is one of biggest tribes in the State and this may be attributable to the presence of low readers or decline in reading interests amongst the youngsters.

Vasha continued that the people of Ukhrul district seem to have no interest in establishing a publication house though many youngsters from the district are in the journalism profession.

Proprietor of Iwui Book Store, Ukhrul Athem said that more than 1000 readers subscribed for newspapers at his shop but the business was halted due to the Covid lockdown.

Reportedly, there used to be more than 10 news stands in Ukhrul town before the Co vid pandemic, but they couldn't resume the business after the situation improved as they lost contact with the hawkers from Imphal.

Significantly no newspaper office in Imphal were locked down or shut even during the intense lockdown that was adopted to tackle the Covid pandemic from 2020.Sub-Editors, reporters and everyone connected to the daily newspaper houses in Imphal were given the leeway by the State Government to carry on with their duties unhindered and keep the people informed of the steps taken up to tackle the pandemic.

The Covid pandemic took a heavy toll on the daily circulation of all the newspapers in Manipur, as in other spheres of life but the work went on unhindered.

It is not only Ukhrul where newspapers from Imphal have not hit the newsstand for the last 2 years, as all other district headquarters were equally hit hard.

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