Lawlessness and tardy development in Manipur will come under the Centre’s scanner when Cabinet Secretary KM Chandrasekhar visits the state for a comprehensive review of the troubled state later this week. He will be accompanied by Union Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta and top officials from ministries handling development in the region.

Coming close on the heels of a high-level meeting in New Delhi, the visit, slated for April 25, would involve a comprehensive review of the current security and development scenario in the state, official sources said here on Tuesday.

As reported by The Indian Express, the Cabinet Secretary held a security review meeting on April 1 where senior state government officials including the chief secretary had briefed him about the situation.

Naga and Meitei militant groups have unleashed a reign of terror in the border state, virtually running a parallel government where extortion thrives and killings have become the norm. Of late, the Centre is worried about the state of lawlessness that has come to define affairs in Manipur. Development projects for which the Centre has already committed funds are yet to take off. These include a secretariat and a Central university in the state capital, Imphal, for which the Prime Minister had laid the foundation stone over three years ago.

Acknowledging the situation, the Union Home Ministry’s latest report says Manipur “continues to be affected by the activities of a large number of militant/insurgent outfits divided on ethnic lines with competing demands, with the Meitei groups being mainly responsible for the violence”.

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