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All the Government employees are exasperated over the non-payment of salaries by the Government. We are in front of an unvaultable financial hurdle. Some maggots have already eaten to the core of our State economy. Overdraft is not an uncommon word in Manipur. Public debt borrowed by the Government to its banker (RBI) which manages accounts, has to be repaid with interest. Public debt occurs when Government accounts are overdrawn.
What makes our State get to the position of what we term the so-called financial crunch? Public expenses incurred by the Government doesn't produce beneficial effects on increasing productivity and also does not lay pavement for employment opportunity and securing equitable distribution of income and wealth in the society. The Government should create more productive units rather than short sighted wasteful extravagant expenditure on unnecessary projects. I wonder why so many canals which lay defunct now were constructed years ago in some districts. These canals do not irrigate land instead they deplete cropped land area.
No politician or high ranking officer in spite of the financial crisis faced by the State, has any cogitation on how we are in a position of perplexity by their selfish motivation. While aiming for personal profit by authorities, achievement of lucrative objectives by proper utilization of public money is never attained. Now we are in debt trap, a situation in which burden of public debt is so heavy that the Government finds it difficult to free itself from its position of indebtedness.
Our State has no profitable industries or undertakings run by Government. Existing unproductive industries are now either dilapidated or on the verge of extinction. Their revenue yielding are below the Government expenses. What is there to give services when most of the departmental firms do not produce material goods? Services are non-productive factor. Officials are appointed to render services, they execute matters concerning products. If the departmental undertakings do not produce physical output, why should Government provide services? Salaries of officials overweight the output of commodities. Dissolution of some departments may boost up financial condition of the State.
Manipur is a rich State ironically in one sense, we see mushroom of mansions and grand houses within and on the periphery of Imphal city. We also see people driving every new brand car and bikes. We can't say we are financially deadlocked when our money is pouring over on buying any vehicles available in the market. Where do we get the money when our State's productions are almost nil? Well, the answer is we are parasites, we lavish money of other hard-working productive states. We Manipuris are sluggish, asleep on work.
About three lakhs non-Manipuris come here to earn daily wages. They work as coolies, cobblers, carpenters, waiters, shopkeeper, haircutters, sweet hawker, balloon sellers, sugarcane juice sellers...
The biggest contribution to the State economy made by agriculture. But does it produce enough food for the whole of one year? Let's have a rough calculation.
Arable land = 22500 hectares
Yielding rate per hectare = 1800 kg
Total yielding
= 225000 x 1800
= 405000000 kg.
Total population including non-Manipuris = 2700000
Approx. per head annually
= 405000000/2700000
= 125 kg.
We customarily have two meals a day; one person atleast consumes 200 gm of rice per meal
In one year a person consumes = 365 x 2 x 200
= 146 kg.
Shortage = 146-125= 21 kg
Total population shortage
= 1700000 x 21
= 357000000 kg.
We are not self sufficient. We not only imported rice but also vegetable food.
Our scant revenue is drained away to other States by importing materials and goods that could easily be manufactured in our State. We can set up industries for manufacturing these goods by making expenditure lesser than its revenue receipts. We can never be a self-contented state when our capital money is swept away. Moreover other States educational institutions entice our students. This also drains away our wealth. (the longest file I have ever seen other than human chain made during ceasefire agitation, is the queue in front of GPO money order counter).
Why do many department incur losses? As for electricity we see foul play. It is not surprising that there is not a single home/shop which has the main line directly into the meter box. Sneakingly diverted connection before entering meter boxes for heavy power consumed appliances has become a vogue made acceptable by every linesman. The telephone department is no exception. Sagging of cables over the posts, tangling of wires on the connecting boxes show ill-performance of duty. Non-function of lines which happens (often when they came) now and then seems deliberately done by them to get remuneration for the service.
All employees of Government department act nonchalantly to any service render to them by any common individual unless, of courses, hush-money is made. A tip to employees should not be counted as bribery. It is a sort of thing which is quite common in places where wages are low. It is the only way that employees can supplement their meager incomes. LDC and its equivalent rank constitute a far greater number of all employees. These III graded employees receive Rs. 4000 to 5000 monthly as salary. They could not save when a large portion of their salaries were spent on feeding their families. The only source of money to set aside for other purposes is receiving gratuity from the common people. Who are the ones to look out like big shot corrupted leeches? It is for the interest of man and society which prom-pts the Government's rebels to resorts to salting these leeches. What is Vigilance Dept for? Oh, they set up their own morals: brothers for brothers. Lemurs see no evil against their own ones unless of course, some overlookers surface their (corrupted officers') monkey business.
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