State and Central Govt should verify the territory of Manipur: O Joy
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, July 12 2018: Veteran politician Okram Joy has opined that the State Government and the Central Government should verify and confirm that the territory of Manipur has not been affected by the erection of Indo-Myanmar border/boundary pillar number 81 while contending that the traditional boundary mentioned in the "Agreement on International Boundary with India on March 10, 1967" should refer to the boundaries that existed during the time of "Treaty of Yandabo", boundary record maintained by British India in 1891,1947 orin 1949.He further said that the description of land in landmarks is not appropriate and should be done through the measurements of longitude and latitude using scientific tools.

Speaking as a resource person on the topic "The position of Manipur Government vis-a-vis Myanmar incursion" at a public discourse on the border dispute with Myanmar which was organized by Manipur State Council, All India Youth Front at Manipur Press Club today, Joy observed that the loss of Manipur's territory to Myanmar is a very serious issue which implies the weakness of both the Central and State Governments.

He said that the Central Government must consider the matter seriously and do all that is needful to protect it.

It is known through a letter issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) that the State Government has knowledge about the recent activities carried out by the Central Government and the Government of Myanmar at the border.

As such, the State Government cannot run away from the issue, he added.

Asking whether the State Government and Central Government have verified the location of BP no 81 at the ground, he lamented that the State Government and the Central Government Ministers who visited the State as well as a memorandum issued on July 8 by Ministry of External Affairs, claimed that the BP number 81 has been erected in the right location.

What needs to be discussed and questioned is whether BP number 81 is erected in the right location/place and it is needed to find out whether the land/territory of Manipur has been lost or not, Joy conveyed.

Asserting that the Government of India maintained two different figures regarding the size of Manipur in 1961, he asked why the Government did so.

Imphal Free Press Editor Pradeep Phanjoubam while speaking on the topic "The appeasement policy of New Delhi with Myanmar and its adverse impacts in the Manipur territory" maintained that the State Government as well as the sections of the society should make the Central Government understand that the people are not happy with taking the border issue lightly.

He also said that the people and the Government should come to the right approach while addressing the border issues of Manipur and added that scientific devices like GPS should be used in pinpointing the borders of the State.

He also opined that conducting a survey all along the borders of Manipur with the inclusion of research scholars and experts from the State will go a long way towards preserving and protecting the border demarcations of the State.

Many other resource persons and CSOs also spoke on various border related topics during the programme.

Comment