IMPHAL: Despite a government order to reopen schools in India’s violence-hit Manipur state, nearly all educational institutions remained closed on Wednesday. The state has been grappling with ethnic clashes for the past two months, resulting in the loss of nearly 120 lives.
According to an anonymous state education department official, students, teachers, and support staff did not show up at schools in the morning. While a few private schools opened their doors, all government-run schools remained closed.
“There is a sense of fear and insecurity among the people, and hence we decided against sending our children to school,” stated Ibotombi Singh, a businessman from the state capital, Imphal.
The state government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP party, had issued an order to reopen schools for children aged between five and 14, despite ongoing sporadic clashes between ethnic groups in the hilly state bordering Myanmar.
Footage from news agency ANI, however, showed some students attending classes inside a classroom and walking within the school premises in Imphal.
Violence in Manipur
The violence in Manipur erupted on May 3 due to resentment between members of the Kuki tribe, who reside in the hills and enjoy economic benefits and quotas in government jobs and education, and the Meiteis, who control the more prosperous lowlands. The clashes were triggered after a court suggested extending the special privileges granted to the Kukis, who comprise 16% of the state’s population, to the Meiteis, the majority group in Manipur.
The violence has resulted in the deaths of at least 118 people, with over 40,000 individuals displaced. Despite several rounds of peace talks, no resolution has been reached between the warring factions.
The federal government has urged the state’s chief minister to intensify efforts and deployed additional security forces. However, there are concerns that the warring factions may be receiving support from Myanmar.
Over the weekend, India’s Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and Myanmar’s junta leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing reaffirmed their commitment to preventing activities “inimical to the other” in their territories, as stated by the Indian government.
