IMPHAL, June 28 NNN: The Naga Peoples Front (NPF), Manipur State said the proposed Chakpi Multi-purposed Dam have affected many tribal villages and their lands would be submerged or displaced while ultimate beneficiaries will be non-tribals at the cost of the tribal people.
According to Athuan Abonmai, Manipur chief minister O. Ibobi Singh’s recent announcement to constitute a committee with a retired high court Judge to bring equal development to the hill areas is a blatant lie.
“How can the hill people expect a good thing from the Congress led Manipur government while their fundamental and constitutional rights were denied?” the NPF leader questions.
“Mr. O. Ibobi has stated that the hill people were the ones who misused the development fund of the hill area but we would like to know from the chief minister as to what funds and who had misused them?” the NPF also asked while further posing a question, “Mr Ibobi meant his Congress tribal MLAs or those un-mandated so called district council members?”
Posing a series of questions, NPF, Manipur State secretary Athuan Abonmai said, “What is the quantum of fund allocation for hill districts which is covering 90% of geographical areas of the state? How can a shoe string budget allocation of hill districts do any remarkable achievement in this vast hilly region? Besides,there is a provision of tribal sub-plan in each and every dept. through central funding. Where are all those fund gone? Who has been misappropriating those money? There is no any achievement from any dept. for tribal under tribal sub-plan except Tribal Development department Ibobi may lie but for how long will it last?”
Another discriminatory act of the Manipur government is the recently created/constituted Manipur Rural Development Agency (MRDA), pointed out the Naga party.
“That District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) is a centralised agency whose cannot be diverted/deducted by the state govt. That is why it has deliberately constituted the MRDA so that Manipur state govt. can divert fund meant for hill districts from DRDA. Moreover, it can be facilitating the valley based UGs to deduct DRDA fund of hill districts.
Since the handing over of DRDA to the District Council, the highly reputed agency DRDA is becomes farcical institution. No welfare schemes implemented properly and even the IAY which normally benefited for the poor villagers were totally misused by the so called councillors and distributed to their few selected relatives or dear and near one only. In the name of empowering to the un-mandated ADC Members, 25% of MGNREGS fund is also diverted. It is not empowering but depriving the tribal public in the hill districts of their due share,” the NPF, Manipur State said.
Read more / Original news source: http://manipur-mail.com/npf-says-low-budget-for-hill-areas/
