Manipur: Union Minister RR Singh urges PM Modi to convert Moreh into a cantonment hub

Imphal: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been urged to convert Moreh, India’s last border town in Manipur’s Tengnoupal district with Myanmar on the south into a cantonment cum commercial hub under the Cantonment Act, 2006.

This was stated by Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Education Dr Rajkumar Ranjan Singh in a letter written to the PM.

Against the backdrop of the present fragile law and order situation at Moreh, the town can be converted into a cantonment town as it has all inherent cosmopolitan commercial characters, Dr Ranjan said in the letter.

As Moreh is a golden goose for our country, let us redeem peace and normalcy at Moreh and make it functional at the earliest, Dr Ranjan, the MP elected from the Inner Manipur Parliamentary constituency said.

Historically, Dr Ranjan wrote that during 1948-49 there were no settlements except for some Meitei settlers from Kabaw Valley and Tamils, Punjabis, and Biharis who had come to Moreh after the separation of Burma from British India in 1937.

These people were working in the Government establishment and private companies in Mandalay and Rangoon before 1937. The first Chief Minister of Manipur Maharaj Kumar Priyabrata Singh (Captain PB Singh) asked one trader called Murali to establish a business center with the assurance of Rs 1 lakh for the establishment but the trader denied it.

Moreh is a unique town inhabited by many people belonging to different communities or ethnicities.

However, due to the ongoing ethnic tension, the population has come down drastically as most of the people have fled and only a few thousand are staying there as of now, Dr Ranjan said.

As an unfortunate repercussion of ethnic clash, Moreh town has been converted into a ghost town.

The trade and business remain defunct for almost 7 months now.

So, Moreh requires a foolproof and secure system for both the inhabitants and their business".

Against this backdrop, Ranjan sought the PM's attention toward making Moreh a cantonment cum commercial Town on the model of Delhi Cantonment Board for running the affairs of Moreh.

He added that a more flexible hybrid management model involving both military and civil authorities including local representatives may be worked out for flawlessly running the proposed commercial, cantonment town.