Where Is Manipur?

Ambika Nepram *

When for the first time I came out from Imphal for my higher studies way back in 2001- when I introduced myself to the new people I met in the hostel and elsewhere, the most common(and irritating) question people asked me when I said that I was from Imphal or Manipur was - WHERE IS MANIPUR?

I was surprised rather shocked that people elsewhere doesn't know MANIPUR. How possibly wouldn't they know a state which is a part of India? I used to think that time - maybe their knowledge concerning the geography of India or whatever was very poor.

(From my younger days, I knew all the states of India and the various capitals and important places). But I had this feeling of embarrassment and a feeling of sadness that filled my heart whenever people posed me with that question. I faced everything with a smile explaining them where Manipur is.

At present, I am doing my management course (MBA) and in my 2nd semester. In the 1st semester, we had a subject called Indian Society where the author has written a topic on the North Eastern states of India. When we were discussing the issues about the north-east, all the facts and problems concerning about the north-eastern states (where most people were ignorant) and Manipur came up.

I was quite embarrassed in front of the whole class though I had my own say about all the problems existing in Manipur. Incidentally, the teacher who was teaching us the subject happened to be the author of the same book and he had approached me to give him new insights and if I can, to write something more about Manipur and the north east and give it to him so that he can add in his next edition of the book. I never wrote - what would I write?

Another recent discussion about Manipur was with our HRM (Human Resource Management) teacher who happened to be in the Industry for more than 25 years and in his vast span of career have worked all over India including Manipur. This particular class, we were discussing about the nature of the people concerning work, in various parts of India.

He said that people in Manipur are not hard working and if given a chance, we try to run away from work. He asked whether it is true that all the offices and work places in Manipur except the shops and commercial centers closes by 4:00 pm. Everyone in my class were shocked and asked whether it was true. Our teacher discussed various points about the problems existing in Manipur and I can’t deny that I agreed to whatever he said.

He had a good knowledge about the problems existing out there and I thought there is no reason to get angry about frank and free discussions. He was also speaking about the north east as a whole and my colleagues from the whole belt of the north east felt bad and angry about the criticisms made by the teacher. I accepted whatever he said. He is an experienced person and whatever he spoke was not a perception the whole world has got for us-those were facts. And personally, I felt we shouldn't be so immature too, not to accept facts and get angry when people show us our faults instead of trying to change ourselves. And my respect for the teacher grew when he said that we have come so far from home to gain more knowledge, to gain new insights- to make a difference.

People’s perceptions about us are not at all wrong. We are one of the most economically backward states in the country. Maybe our geographical region and the landscape have something to do with making life difficult for us and cutting us out from the rest of the country. When the whole world is aiming for globalization and growth, we are still backward and growth is just out of the question.

There are no industries, no infrastructure and no development. How long are we going to stay like this? How long are we - you and me going to feel embarrassed when people ask where Manipur is and when discussions about Manipur come up? How long? - That is the question!

------------------------------------

* Ambika Nepram, an MBA student, writes for the first time to e-pao.netThe writer can be contacted at nepramambika@yahoo.co.in This article was webcasted on 30th April 2005