| Road to NE Health
It is obvious the state government does not want to dump any of its corporations, regardless of their performances and more that this, the chances of breathing life back into these moribund organizations. We do agree that given the will and determination, some can be made to stand on their own feet again, but there are others which are undoubtedly beyond salvaging. Moreover, the interest shown by the government seems to more about saving jobs than saving these corporations.
A very wrong premise to start off with, and hence we are convinced will meet with no success -- at all. It does not need the application of profound economics theories to come to the conclusion that it is the corporations which must be first nurtured back to health, so that they can create and sustain jobs. The premise is also a loud indication that the will behind the revival moves is of material akin to straw than the steel that is called for. We appeal to the government to see reality and the urgency of it all. No manna is going to drop from Heaven and these corporations can survive only if they are willing to go through and pass the test by fire.
But let this be for the time being. There are other thoughts to be considered. Like all other issues in the state, perhaps the revival of these corporations cannot be, or else should not be, viewed in isolation. Perhaps they will have a much better chance of survival if they are integrated to other trends in geopolitics and consequently the international markets. This idea is relevant in view of the proposed international highway from Bangkok to New Delhi via Imphal.
If Afghanistan and the other central Asian countries open up in the days ahead, perhaps the old idea of a grand Trans Asian highway running from Bangkok to Istanbul can become a reality. But for now the Bangkok-New Delhi highway is very much on the anvil, and we see it very much as a hope not just for the sick corporations of the Manipur government, but for a general return of vim into all other economic activities in the state and beyond.
As for instance, we see no reason why the Manipur government’s cycle assembly plant cannot do well in the advent of such a highway and an access to the markets in Upper Myanmar. The same can be said of so many other areas of trade and commerce, and we are quite certain the enthusiasm is mutual on the other side of the Indo-Myanmar border.
Apart from the Bangkok Highway, we do hope the government will also think of giving a sea access to the landlocked Northeast states. This should not be difficult if the route well used by underground elements is opened up and a highway built to Cox Bazar and Chittagong Port in Bangladesh. A glimpse at the map of the region will definitely make this appear achievable. From the southern-most tips of Mizoram or Tripura, the Bay of Bengal seems only a pole vaulting distance away.
While these are only musings of what can be made possible further down the future, the government of Manipur can indeed begin thinking of an integrated economic policy that gives more importance to the possibilities offered by the Moreh trade route immediately. Like recommending jogging instead of medicinal drugs to the sick, maybe it can solve a lot more problems for the state than just its terminally ill corporations.
(Courtesy: The Imphal Free Press)
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