I remember drinking the last bottle of beer on December 31, 1989. The insurgents notably the RPF went ahead and declared Manipur a dry state swiftly followed by the government and both parties were possibly playing a politics of one-upmanship. The intended result was to get rid of societal ills brought on by liquor and unfortunately even after all these 15 years or so, consumption of liquor continues and the policy to ban sale and consumption of liquor is a total failure.

The immediate result was the forfeiture of tax income from sale of liquor resulting in the government becoming even poorer, which in the right scheme of things would have used the tax income for developmental purposes. Besides, as liquor consumption continues unabated, the health of the average citizen of Manipur is also subject to deterioration due to the poor quality of liquor which is bootlegged. So in essence, the ban on liquor sale and consumption not only is bad for Manipur's economy, but also bad for Manipur's health and that will lead to serious consequences down the line if not in the immediate future.

The President of China is on a state visit to the United States and the first person he met is Bill Gates of Microsoft. In fact he will spend more time with business leaders than with the political leader which is George Bush. Many analysts are opining that it is an insult to the President of the United States. It is indeed very clear that the Chinese are consumed with economy, economic growth and all things economic, whereas the US seems more pre-occupied with issues political. Take Iraq, the latest Iran nuclear issue, immigration and the war on terror. In the same vein, we in the North-East starting with the insurgents are so engrossed with the present degenerated form of insurgency which in my opinion seems to be leading nowhere. None of the underground leaders seem to have the vision and the ability to look beyond the narrow confines and ideas in which they are stuck in.

Th Muivah is preoccupied with his agenda of integration of Naga-inhabited areas and unleashing his front organizations to call for economic blockades like the one called by ANSAM which practically brought Manipur to its knees economically and which could lead to serious misunderstandings if such were resorted to time and time again. The whole logic of strangulating a particular region or area is rather unfortunate as these perpetrators do not seem to understand what commerce is and what commerce does. We must realize that it is commerce and trade between states, between countries that benefit the peoples by way of economic growth. Perhaps a refresher course in Adam Smith's Wealth of the Nations might be helpful. If Nagalim's dream of sovereignty is to be achieved at all and if it hopes to join the comity of nations, imposing economic blockades will certainly be the cause for its own doom arising out of nothing but stupidity.

The insurgents as entities need money to sustain their movements and that is something everyone knows. And most people are confused as to what their agenda is. Some talk about regaining Manipur's sovereignty and all that good stuff, but the underlying fact is that these so called insurgents have nowhere to raise cash for its struggle but to take up contract works and resort to extortions. All is not well with the way the revolutionary movement is going along.

Manipur is actually caught between a rock and a very hard place. The failure of the government to take up any developmental works that could at least lead to some job creations is also stunted since it is preoccupied with security issues more than anything else. In such an atmosphere of political uncertainty and instability, there is no way business conditions are going to improve. There will be no one willing to invest their money in Manipur as most investors are risk-averse by nature. Investments are made so that there is a return on those investments. In Manipur, as soon as a business is set up, a demand letter is immediately forwarded that sucks the blood out of the venture and predictably everything goes downhill. The jobs that were supposed to be created with the setting up of a business disappear in thin air and this scenario is repeated all the time. Wouldn't it be nice if these insurgent groups open up some front companies and start making money to feed their struggle or for that matter get into the lucrative drug trade as those outfits in Colombia does very effectively? That was a suggestion of desperation of course.

The issue here is that Manipur can no longer continue with this present predicament and sooner than later this has to come to an end. The revolutionaries have failed Manipur and with the rising frustration of the people, the time is coming when a massive revolt against these revolutionaries could occur and they could be crushed once and for all. They seem to be becoming a nuisance with each passing day with the latest incident by the KCP (City Meitei) faction summoning Newspaper Editors and holding them hostage even if it was for a night. What are they thinking and what is their agenda? Idiotic moves such as this will seriously impair their ability to carry forward their struggle. We are not in some dictatorship even though we definitely are in most aspects living in one.

The migration of the educated youths to other parts of India in search of jobs and livelihood has become a daily happening and I am sure the insurgents are taking note of this because one fine day there will be no one in Manipur except themselves trying to govern each other. That scenario is a likelihood if this unchecked stream of actions is not rectified.

In this era of globalization where the mantra is to make money, we are on the reverse road to poverty, degradation and deterioration in all walks of life; be it economic, political or social. The future is bleak indeed and the people could end up taking matters into its own hands to end the 'menace' once and for all. The insurgents need to forget this whole 'revolutionary' idea as they are increasingly become a joke unto themselves. They need to clean up their acts and come forward with a comprehensive plan that would also incorporate economic development ideas alongside their political agenda. For instance 'Special Economic Zones' which were created in almost every country that cares about trade and commerce, could also be set up in Manipur.

India has special economic zones where business and commerce are encouraged with the government offering special incentives as part of the overall economic policy. The insurgents first of all should not interfere in the conduct of business and should designate 'zones' where businesses can be allowed to open and flourish which will be a source for job creation. As an example, they could declare Paona Bazaar as a 'Special Economic Zone' and in fact render its support in creating an atmosphere conducive to business. They themselves could set up shop in one of these 'Special Economic Zones' and join the bandwagon of money makers instead of being money suckers. But to what extent the law will allow that to happen is another issue. Front organizations could be good for starters. Well, the idea is that an urgent need to think economics and associate economic development in the overall policy of these insurgent outfits is of utmost importance, since they are the single factor for chasing away potential investors.

At the same time, we have another nuisance looming by way of the so- called 'Commandos'. These uneducated fools masquerading as 'enforcers of the law' has been under serious scrutiny and drawing severe flak with many blunders under its name. The higher ups in the state police machinery need to address this issue which seems to be arising out of indiscipline. If this is the sorry state of affairs in an entity that is supposed to be the protector of the law coupled with the degenerated form of insurgency flourishing in Manipur, we are not too far away from an impending doom and civil war where everyone will be forced to take the law unto its own hands. A complete breakdown in the law and order scenario is well envisaged and only vested interests will be there to make gain in such chaos.

Insurgents, security forces, student organizations and other civil society groups should at least draw toward an agenda where economic development should be given an earnest and thoughtful consideration. A discourse towards formulating a comprehensive policy that will eventually lead to creation of an atmosphere conducive to business will be a good beginning. Security forces and insurgents should make sure that armed engagements take place in the remote areas in the valley or the hills, where involvement of civilians is minimized.

We should also call upon our bandh-callers especially our brethren in the hills to do away with economic blockades at that do nothing but harm to all peoples both in the valley and the hills. Perhaps there must be other ways to pressure the government. Any act that discourages and blocks commerce and trade are acts of fools.