Manipur: Manipur government plans to shift 50k displaced to temporary shelters

With more than 50,000 people living in relief camps, the Manipur administration is planning to shift them to temporary shelters with better basic facilities. About 3,000 temporary shelters will be built and the Center is likely to sanction ₹130 crore for their construction.

According to Manipur government officials, there are close to 360 relief camps. “As the situation remains tense, there is a need to provide better facilities and security to the displaced people. The temporary shelters will have rooms where family members can stay together. The present relief camps have bare minimum facilities and are in the form of large halls,” said a senior official.

When contacted, Manipur chief secretary Vineet Joshi told ET: “Around 3,000 temporary shelters are being planned and deputy commissioners are working on the same. They will be demand-driven.”

Several families are staying in relief camps due to the fear of violence and they would like to return to their homes once the situation improves, another official said. Union home ministry officials said that financial assistance was being extended to the Manipur government for relief and rehabilitation of the displaced people.

The ministry had earlier approved a ₹101.75 crore package after Union home minister Amit Shah visited the state last month. The Center has deployed 20 teams of doctors in the hills and valley. Manipur Police has registered nearly 5,900 FIRs, six of them are being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The peace committee set up by the union home ministry, however, has remained a non-starter.