The State Government of Manipur is “fully committed and prepared to protect the indigenous people” of the state. This was stated by Chief Minister N Biren Singh on the fourth day of the 12th session of the 11th Manipur Legislative Assembly on Monday.
Biren Singh assured the House that the State Government is “fully committed and prepared to protect the indigenous people” of the state. The Chief Minister, while replying to a question raised by MLA Km. AK. Mirabai, said that there have been enough Acts/Rules and Regulations like MLR & LR Act, Provisions of Article 371 and Act to Protect Paddy Fields to protect the land, culture and language among others of the indigenous people and if required the government will take up necessary steps to safeguard the same.
The Chief Minister further stated that after the implementation of Inner Line Permit System from January 1- December 31, 2020 a total of 1,62,902 permits have been issued in 4 categories – Special Category Permit, Regular Permit, Temporary Permit and Labour Permit and a sum of Rs. 2,52,78,000/- has been collected. A total of 3636 permits have also been renewed so far.
Replying to a question and supplementary raised by MLA Surjakumar Okram, the Chief Minister said that steps will be taken up to subsidize the rate of charges for COVID-19 testing after consulting with the stakeholders including private hospitals and clinics. He also said that a total of 5, 19, 458 tests have been conducted till February 2, 2021 of which 4,34,960 tests and 84,498 tests were carried out at government and private facilities respectively. As soon a case is reported, contact tracing is conducted to prevent further spreading of the virus, thus lowering the rate of infection, he added.
The Chief Minister, who is also in charge of Art & Culture, then said that necessary steps are being taken up to introduce post graduate diploma courses at Manipur State Film & Television Institute. He was replying to a query raised by MLA Surjakumar Okram. He said State cabinet has already approved for recruitment of staffs including faculty members of the institute. Equipment and library of the institute have been installed and once the recruitment process is completed, classes will be conducted as early as possible. Full autonomy will also be given to the institute, he added.
Meanwhile, Forest & Environment Minister, Awangbou Newmai assured the House that steps to conserve and develop wetlands will be taken up soon. While replying to a query raised by MLA P. Brojen Singh, the minister said that after the notification of Wetland (Conservation & Management) Rules, 2017, steps to conserve and protect major wetlands like Ikop Pat, Kharung Pat and Waithou Pat will be initiated as soon as possible. He also stated that taking serious note of the deteriorating environmental conditions; the government is taking up all-out efforts to conserve the wetlands. If required proper demarcation will be conducted and boundary will be fixed, he also said.
The Forest minister while replying to another question raised by MLA K. Ranjit Singh said that steps have been taken up to protect wild life in the state. He said 4 wild life species have been considered extinct according to available records and some have been on the verge of extinction. He further said that 2 National Parks, 7 Wildlife Sanctuaries and 11 Community Reserves have been identified. Besides these, Manipur Zoological Garden at Iroishemba, Nongin Captive Breeding Centre and Sangai Captive Breeding Centre at Langol Ching and Orchid Preservation Centre at Khonghampat have already been set up to conserve and protect the species.
Meanwhile, during the Zero Hour, Chief Minister N. Biren Singh informed the House that thorough investigation will be conducted in connection with the recent attack by unidentified miscreants to an MCS officer who was on his way back to Imphal after joining as ADC, Noney at an area in between Charoi Padongba and CRPF Camp along Imphal-Jiribam National Highway on February 2, 2021. Giving a statement in this regard, the Chief Minister said that a suo-moto case has been registered and investigation is on. The motive behind the incident is yet to be ascertained and culprits have to be booked, he added.
NNN
