Songpi: Non-camped Internally Displaced Persons in Churachandpur district staged a sit-in protest at the Wall of Remembrance in Tuibong on Thursday, demanding immediate implementation of the Manipur High Court order dated June 11, 2026.
The protest was organized by the IDP Welfare Committee, Churachandpur, and saw participation of displaced families from different parts of the district. The protesters held placards highlighting their grievances and called for equal treatment of all displaced persons.
According to the committee, the Manipur High Court had directed the administration to provide relief materials to non-camped IDPs on par with those living in relief camps. The court had given a 10-week time frame for compliance, with September 7 fixed as the deadline.
Speaking to media persons at the protest site, Reuben Haokip, Secretary of the IDP Welfare Committee, Churachandpur, said the protest was necessitated due to alleged inaction on the part of the government and district administration.
He said that despite the High Court order being clear and time-bound, there has been no visible step taken to extend relief assistance to non-camped IDPs in the district so far. The sit-in was organized to pressurise the authorities to act within the stipulated time.
File Photo: Non-camped Internally Displaced Persons from Churachandpur district staging sit-in protest at Wall of Remembrance demanding implementation of High Court order.
Reuben said the committee had already submitted a forwarding letter to the Deputy Commissioner of Churachandpur seeking implementation of the order, but no positive response has been received. He added that the matter has also been taken up with Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen.
The secretary informed that Churachandpur district currently has 4,389 non-camped IDP families, comprising a total of 20,487 individuals. He said these families have been left out of regular relief distribution and are struggling to survive.
Highlighting the hardships faced by the displaced families, Reuben said financial distress is the biggest challenge. Without any stable income since displacement, many families are unable to afford land and construct houses for resettlement.
He said that land price in Churachandpur is very high and it is not possible to get land free of cost. Building a house requires several lakhs of rupees, which the displaced families do not have. Without government support, return to normal life is not possible.
The protesters also demanded that Direct Benefit Transfer assistance for camped IDPs should be continued until a final settlement is reached. They said stopping DBT before rehabilitation would further push camped families into hardship.
Reuben pointed out that in districts like Kangpokpi and Imphal, there is no division between camped and non-camped IDPs in terms of relief distribution. He alleged that only in Churachandpur such a division has been created.
He alleged that the division is a failure of the district administration and also a result of lack of coordination among social leaders in the district. Such categorization has deprived thousands of genuine IDPs of their entitled assistance.
The committee warned that it will continue to pursue all democratic means to achieve its demands until the High Court order is fully implemented. They said they will approach all concerned authorities and elected representatives in the coming days.
As of Thursday evening, the district administration had not issued any official response to the protest or to the demands raised by the non-camped IDPs.
