Aheli Moitra
Last week the press fraternity heard from Niketu Iralu on what had happened to the Sal trees of Bodo lands. Or the Bodo people in a former land of Sal trees. Foreigners came into the land to exploit the lush Sal trees, slowly wiping out the forest cover for quick gains—short term large benefits for some, leaving most to the dry land of woes.
In a mode of panic, the local Bodo people thought to themselves, “If others can draw benefits from our trees, why not we benefit from them instead?” In such a bid, the Bodo people wiped out their own Sal forests. Those who became rich through the large scale devastation were intellectually devoid of leading the community forward in the scarcity they were faced with.
Cut to Manipur, for whom the battle is below the land. Though more about oil than Sal trees, there is blatant abrogation of rights of people to the land they inhabit.
The Government of India, in 2010, through its Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, granted license for exploration and drilling of oil blocks in Jiribam (East Imphal),Tamenglong and Churachandpur districts in Manipur to a private firm, Jubilant Energy—4000 sq.kms., 30 oil wells and trillions of dollars of revenue. 100% participating interest (investment as well as profit) will be held by Jubilant. 0% by the people who live on the land.
Having decided all of it in 2010, the Government of India approached the people on the land for clearing the environment impact assessment in 2012. As per existing policy, people’s consent is necessary to clear the project, whether they know of the impact or not; whether they attend the public hearing required as per procedure or not.
People on the land, for the Government, are formality.
No cause for jubilation.
Exclusive property rights that the Government of India has over oil and natural gas remains in contradiction to international human rights norms. Existing policies like these lend nation states like India the hollow authority to question the existence of indigenous peoples on “their” territory. And deploy the entire State machinery for the service of multi-national corporations.
In Manipur, people rejected the public hearings straight away. They have asked for the cancellation of Petroleum Exploration Licenses. At Nungba, on August 17, the public extracted a written note from the Manipur Pollution Control Board (PCB) that another round of these bogus public hearings will not be held. Yesterday’s public hearing at the Tamenglong Headquarters by the Manipur PCB is thus forced on the people so that Jubilant, and its associates, can begin work on the oil wells.
In the shrewd scheme of things, roads and education have been promised to the people of the region only if Jubilant steps in. To fit right in, the Government of Manipur has left any form of development aside. The only interest it has shown towards the project, and the people it puts at risk, has been to register FIRs against protesting community leaders, and supply security forces to the tune of a war.
For what? 12.5% of the oil generated, and 10% of the gas? Short change for the number of human lives, the flora, fauna, water, land and a plethora of communities the State will put at risk through the oil exploration. Turning the table to make the protesting people look like a security threat towards state development is a perforated argument. Wokha, it must not be forgotten, was a lesson hard learnt.
This is a classic case of political actors taking advantage of the situation they find themselves (in top level decision making) and the people (without a valid set of rights to land) in. It is to their responsibility that the region, with its natural resources, show magnanimous potential of going the African way.
And, hence, Niketu Iralu has stressed that the “size, nature and quality” of ideas generated from the region will decide if the region becomes a killing field or a land of rights and peace. “People over Profit” will be of prime importance.
