An attempt by a Meitei villager to cultivate a paddy field in Imphal East district on Sunday morning met with resistance from Kuki-Zo villagers from adjoining Kangpokpi district, leading to a five-hour standoff and stone-pelting from both sides.
However, state police and central security forces managed to prevent the situation from escalating through what some described as “deft and patient” handling. Local sources said tension persists in the affected area.
The agriculture sector is among the worst-hit in the state because of the ongoing conflict, with Bishnupur being the most affected. Farmlands of around 5,554 farmers are said to have been impacted. Bishnupur is one of the five Meitei-majority valley districts of the state.
Manipur police, in an X post, said: “Today (Sunday) in the morning at about 10am, a Meitei farmer from Leitanpokpi with a tractor went to plough a paddy field in Sadu Lampak village near a Kuki village. Some Kuki villagers nearby came and objected, saying the paddy field does not belong to him. Meanwhile, some Meiteis nearby also came to the site. Some videos are circulating saying Kukis have come down to stop Meitei farmers.”
“It is to inform that security forces led by additional superintendent of police (Imphal East) and other central forces are already there at the spot and controlling the situation. Additional forces led by the SP and others are also responding. Public are requested not to believe in rumours,” the post added.
A Leitanpokpi local said farmers from his village had gone to their fields around 8am with three tractors, but their attempt to till the land was objected to by the Kuki-Zo villagers.
“A week back, we had taken permission from the BSF personnel posted in our area. The Kuki-Zos (from Songfel village) have tilled their land, but when we do the same, they object. There was stone-pelting and use of slingshots from both sides,” he said.
“The standoff continued till about 3pm but was finally defused. Central forces have assured us that they will find a way out — how we can cultivate our land. We are not asking for more. Police and central forces have controlled the situation with deftness and patience, but tension is still there,” he added. No injuries were reported.
Sources said the objection must be seen in the backdrop of a May 31 statement by several Kuki-Zo groups that buffer zones, areas between Meitei and Kuki-Zo settlements, should remain intact until a political solution to the conflict is found.
A Kuki Students’ Organisation Delhi & NCR office-bearer had then said buffer zones were needed to check violence and restore order.
A 2023 survey by a farmers’ body claimed 9,719 hectares of paddy fields in valley districts could have been affected due to the conflict, as farmers could not access their land.
In May this year, the Opposition Congress in the state said farmers had incurred losses of about ₹250 crore due to the strife, as they could not access farmland, especially in peripheral areas. The party demanded 100 per cent compensation for farmers impacted by the conflict.
The state agriculture department had launched the Farmers’ Compensation Programme in 2023 to support those affected by law and order disruptions.
Compensation rates were set at 100 per cent for farmers cultivating their own land, 80 per cent for tenant farmers, and 20 per cent for non-cultivating landowners.
In Phase I, ₹1,890.334 lakh was distributed to 3,483 farmers, while in Phase II, ₹1,330.043 lakh was provided to 2,071 farmers.