PM Modi in Manipur to meet displaced people, launch Rs 8,500-crore projects

Imphal: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Manipur on Saturday, his first trip to the state since ethnic violence broke out over two years ago, and interact with internally displaced people in Churachandpur and Imphal.

The PM will also inaugurate and lay the foundation stones for development projects worth Rs 8,500 crore.

In view of Modi's visit, security has been tightened in Imphal and Churachandpur district headquarters town.

Both state and central forces' personnel were deployed in large numbers in and around the nearly 237-acre Kangla Fort in Imphal and the Peace Ground in Churachandpur, the venues of the PM's rallies.

In a statement, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on Friday said, "In line with his commitment to inclusive, sustainable and holistic development of Manipur, the PM will lay the foundation stone for multiple development projects worth over Rs 7,300 crore at Churachandpur." Modi will also inaugurate multiple development projects worth more than Rs 1,200 crore from Imphal, it said.

The Prime Minister's visit, which was officially confirmed by Chief Secretary Puneet Kumar Goel on Friday, comes amid repeated criticism by opposition parties for not visiting Manipur following the ethnic strife between the Kuki and Meitei communities, which has left over 260 people dead and thousands homeless since May 2023.

Charting out details of Modi's Manipur visit, Goel said, "On his arrival in Churachandpur around 12.15 pm, he will first interact with some IDPs (internally displaced persons) in the district. He will lay the foundation stones for various infrastructure projects to be taken up throughout the state. The PM will address a public gathering at Peace Ground in Churachandpur."

Thereafter, he will arrive at Kangla around 2.30 pm and first interact with some IDPs, and then inaugurate various developmental projects. The PM will address a public gathering at Kangla, Goel said.

Among the projects, the PM will inaugurate the new Manipur Police headquarters built at a cost of Rs 101 crore at Mantripukhri in Imphal and a civil secretariat, constructed at a cost of Rs 538 crore, in the same locality.

From Churachandpur, Modi will lay the foundation stone for various projects, including the drainage and asset management improvement project worth Rs 3,647 crore and the Manipur Infotech Development (MIND) project at Rs 550 crore.

Though Modi's visit was officially announced only on Friday, the trip was talked about for nearly two weeks, and the Manipur government had on Thursday evening put up a large billboard, announcing the PM's programmes at Churachandpur's Peace Ground and Kangla Fort in Imphal on Saturday.