Manipur govt forms new committees to speed up rehabilitation of displaced persons

Imphal: The Government of Manipur on Monday took a significant step to strengthen ongoing efforts for the rehabilitation and resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the State by constituting State-level and District-level Committees with immediate effect.

This move reflects the Government’s commitment to ensuring a coordinated, responsive, and people-centred approach to restoring stability and supporting affected families, an official statement said on Monday.

Significantly, the Government’s decision comes after the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) and the IDPs announced a series of rallies and sit-in protests to pressure the Government into fulfilling its assurance of resettling IDPs from peripheral areas in their homes by December 2025.

The statement added that the State-level Committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary and comprising the Commissioners of Finance, Home, and Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, with the Special or Additional Secretary (Home) serving as Convenor, will provide strategic oversight and policy direction. This high-level body is designed to ensure unified decision-making, enhance inter-departmental coordination, and address systemic issues that may affect the overall progress of rehabilitation and resettlement efforts across the State.

Complementing this, District-level Committees, chaired by the respective Deputy Commissioners and supported by the Project Director (DRDA), the Additional Deputy Commissioner as Convenor, the Chief Executive Officer of the Zilla Parishad, and the concerned Sub-Divisional Officers, will serve as the primary on-ground mechanism for implementation. Their role is to drive field-level coordination, ensure seamless execution of rehabilitation measures, and provide timely feedback to facilitate swift decision-making at the State level.

The committees are tasked with monitoring and coordinating all rehabilitation and resettlement initiatives for IDPs and addressing bottlenecks to ensure the timely and efficient delivery of support. This structured intervention is expected to streamline processes, strengthen inter-departmental coordination, and ensure that assistance reaches affected families.

Additionally, a report from late 2023 noted that over 60,000 people were internally displaced due to the eruption of ethnic violence in the State. As of July 2025, the Government stated that about 5,000 of the 62,000 displaced persons had returned, suggesting the initial figure was around 62,000.