UKHRUL: Ukhrul MLA Ram Muivah on Thursday met Union minister for water resources C.R. Patil and raised a range of pressing infrastructure and livelihood concerns affecting people in Ukhrul and Kamjong districts, with acute drinking-water scarcity taking centre stage.
The meeting comes three weeks after MLA Muivah wrote to C.R. Patil on September 17, drawing his attention to what he described as the acute scarcity of potable water in the two hill districts and seeking central intervention for the Kongva Multi-Purpose River Valley Project.
Sources close to the MLA said Ram Muivah reiterated the drinking-water crisis during Thursday’s meeting, describing the shortage as an “almost humanitarian crisis” during the lean season.
In his September 17 letter to Patil, Muivah had similarly highlighted the hardship faced by residents, writing: “While the rest of the world takes for granted 24X7 water supply in the kitchen or bathroom, here in Ukhrul, Jerusalem of Manipur, our mothers, sisters and daughters have to get up at the break of dawn to fetch water from the spring in the forest in this 21st century.”
The MLA on Thursday highlighted the absence of electricity in 21 villages in Ukhrul and Kamjong, particularly affecting people living in border areas. “When the sun sets, our people in border areas feel as if they are blind,” he said.
MLA Muivah further raised the recurring impact of flash floods on agriculture, saying paddy fields are either washed away or submerged during flooding, leaving affected families helpless.
Against this backdrop, MLA Muivah said he submitted a project for the construction of a multipurpose dam under the Ministry of Water Resources, aimed at addressing the region’s water-related needs.
The proposal is linked to the Kongva Multi-Purpose River Valley Project, for which a Detailed Project Report prepared by the Water Resources Department, Government of Manipur, had been enclosed with Muivah’s September 17 letter to Patil.
In that letter, Ram Muivah had said the proposed Kongva project would, inter alia, provide drinking water to Ukhrul, Kamjong and parts of Imphal East, besides serving as a flood-control measure and providing for irrigation, reclamation of more than 100 acres of land, power, tourism and fisheries.
He described potable-water scarcity as one of the biggest challenges confronting Ukhrul and Kamjong, saying he had personally witnessed the hardship and suffering caused by the shortage. He attributed part of the problem to the traditional settlement pattern of communities on ridges for defensive purposes during the period when head-hunting was practised.
The September 17 letter also identified areas it said were among the worst affected by the water crisis.
In Ukhrul, these included the district headquarters and areas along the NH-202 corridor such as Lunghar, Nungbi, Kalhang, Kuirei, Marem, Ngahui, Chingjaroi, Razai and Kharasom, extending up to Jessami ADC headquarters and Chingai Sub-Division headquarters.
In Kamjong, Muivah listed areas including Shingcha, Bungpa, Garirhang, Rambhoi, Koso, Shakok, Leishi, Leiting, Phalang, Hundung Kota, Alang, Phungyar Sub-Division headquarters, Khambi, Maileng, Sorte and Soraphung.
He also cited several southern areas, including Lungshang, Shangzing, Lungphreingphai, Shangshak, Shokvao, Lungpha and Mahadev, among locations facing severe water shortages.
In his September 17 communication, Muivah had requested Patil’s personal intervention for sanction of the project under the Ministry of Water Resources or through external-aided projects such as the New Development Bank (NDB), describing the matter as one concerning the “life and death” of people in Ukhrul and Kamjong.
Following Thursday’s meeting, Muivah said Patil gave him a patient hearing and assured him of “all possible help” under his ministry. He said the Union minister stressed that “water is life” and that the country has a responsibility to alleviate the hardships faced by people living in border areas.
