Over 2,000 Govt Employees Transferred To Safer Districts In Manipur: Report

The transfers come amid a deep sense of insecurity even among government employees. Since the outbreak of violence in Manipur on May 3, a trust-deficit has developed between the state's Meitei and tribal communities.?

Manipur has been in the grips of ethnic violence since May 3 when ethnic clashes erupted between the state's Meitei and tribal communities. Over 150 people have been killed and around 60,000 were displaced. Houses, places of worship, public buildings, and political establishments have been attacked in the months-long violence. It has also been reported that divisions seen in the larger population are also reflecting among the government employees.?

The Hindu on Friday reported that more than 2,000 government employees have been "transferred to districts where they would face no threats". The report was based on a filing by the Manipur government in the Supreme Court earlier this month.

The Meitis live in the plains and valley the tribals most live in the hills. Numerically, the Meitis are dominant but the tribals have more land in Manipur.?

"Since ethnic violence erupted between the Kuki and Meitei communities in Manipur on May 3, a sharp divide has emerged in the functioning of government offices and the judiciary in the State. Given that the hills are dominated by the Kuki-Zo tribals, while the Meitei people form the majority in the valley districts, officials of both communities are unable to perform their duties in districts where the other is dominant," reported The Hindu.?

Through the months-long violence, the tribal leaders have demanded a separate administrative set-up. Earlier, they demanded a 'separate administration' for the tribal regions of the state, which was closely defined. An MLA also suggested to carve the state into multiple union territories (UTs). Now, the 10 Kuki MLAs, including seven from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), have demanded that the tribal regions should have separate or equivalent posts of Chief Secretary and Director General of Police (DGP).

The MLAs say since all the top officials are based in Imphal, which lies in the Meitei-dominated valley, a parallel set-up in the hills is needed "to solve the problems faced by the government employees belonging to the Kuki-Zo tribals".

"It is also pertinent to mention here that even the IAS (Indian Administrative Service) and MCS (Manipur Civil Service) officers, and IPS (Indian Police Service) and MPS (Manipur Police Service) officers belonging to the Kuki- Zo tribes have been unable to function and discharge their duties, as Imphal valley has also become a valley of death for us," said the MLAs in a representation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.