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Our Correspondent
Imphal, Oct. 19 (EMN): Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Wednesday requested the Director General of Assam Rifles Lt. General PC Nair to initiate the process of vacating the Assam Rifles camp from Manipur University Campus at Canchipur in the outskirts of Imphal.
Shifting of the Assam Rifles camp from its existing camp at the Manipur University campus has been a long pending demand.
Biren Singh made the request while addressing a seminar organised by the Assam Rifles at the City Convention Centre on the theme “Future Ready Manipur – looking Beyond Ethnicity and Insurgency”.
He expressed satisfaction to learn that the Assam Rifles has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Manipur University for organising such seminars to brainstorm ideas for a prosperous and peaceful Manipur.
Expressing hope that the seminar would provide tools to chart a way towards a prosperous and peaceful Manipur, he said that the Assam Rifles, Manipur Police and other paramilitary forces and the public need to change the mindsets and views towards each other as the law and order situation of the state had considerably improved.
He further stated that being a border state, problems of drugs and illegal immigration not only present a socio-economic problem but also has security dimensions. He added that the Manipur government had been making all efforts under its initiative of War on Drugs 2.0 to tackle the problem of drugs in the state. Simultaneously, programmes to provide alternative livelihood for poppy planters are being taken up.
The seminar was attended by ministers L Susindro Meitei (Consumer Affairs Food and Public Distribution), Th Basanta Kumar Singh (Education), Lamlai MLA Kh Ibomcha Singh, Lt. Gen PC Nair, Vice-Chancellor of universities, senior officials of Assam Rifles and other paramilitary forces and students among others.
The day’s event was conducted in two sessions. The first plenary session was chaired by Jaideep Saikia on the topic “The Troubled Neighbour - Turbulent Myanmar: Implications and impact” wherein the esteemed panelists analysed recent developments and trends in Myanmar on the ethnic, diplomatic, strategic and economic fronts.
The panelists of the first session included former ambassador to Myanmar Gautam Mukhopadhaya, a Myanmar expert H K Jain and former Chairman of Land Ports Authority of India Yudhvir Shahrawat.
Dr. Alex Waterman of German Institute for Global and Area Studies, Germany, also delivered a virtual talk on the impact of the “Naga Peace Process in Manipur”. The second plenary session was chaired by veteran Lt. Gen. K H Singh (Retd.) on the topic “Past v/s Future: Shedding the Historical Baggage in Manipur” wherein state Education Minister Th Basanta Singh, renowned journalists Subir Bhaumik and Pradip Phanjoubam also enlightened the audience on the roadmap for a peaceful future in the region.