New Delhi: A parliamentary panel has recommended that the union ministry of women and child development should establish a dedicated special committee with a targeted and separate programme/policy/scheme for the internally displaced women and children in Manipur in the aftermath of the ethnic violence that broke out in the north eastern state on May 3, 2023.The recommendation was made by the Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports headed by Congress MP Digvijaya Singh, which presented the 365th Report on Demands for Grants 2025-26 pertaining to the Ministry of Women and Child Development to the Rajya Sabha on March 28.In its report, the committee noted that Manipur has been “under an extraordinary crisis for 21 months” in which over hundreds of lives have been lost and 60,000 people displaced internally and living in relief camps.“A significant portion of those affected are women and children, who have been rendered homeless, deprived of basic necessities, and left in extreme distress. Their access to nutrition, education, and healthcare has been severely disrupted. These children, pregnant women, lactating mothers, and elderly women are facing immense hardship, leading to grave psychological and social consequences. The absence of economic opportunities has further deepened the despair,” the report said.‘Take steps to safeguard women and children in relief camps from sexual violence’The committee said that while it appreciates the efforts undertaken by the ministry, a special committee with a targeted programme is necessary for the internally displaced women and children.“This initiative should ensure direct monitoring and transparent delivery of assistance to prevent misuse and guarantee the well-being of affected individuals. Special provisions must be made for the education of displaced children, healthcare for lactating mothers, and employment alternatives for affected women to rebuild their lives. Steps must be taken to safeguard women and children in relief camps from sexual violence,” the report said.The committee also recommended that additional steps should be taken for nutritious food, breakfast, adequate accommodation facility to women and children in relief camps in Manipur.“The Committee also recommends that Ministry should allocate additional funds for provision of the same as well as to facilitate women and children staying in relief camps in Manipur till the situation becomes norm,” the committee said in its report.The report also noted that the National Commission for Women (NCW)’s northeast cell has focussed its activities on other states in the region in the past two years despite the conflict in Manipur.“The Committee notes that the Reports of the NCW from its consultations in Manipur consistently emphasizsd the need for a women-led peacebuilding and cooperation effort. The Committee notes that the NCW Northeast Cell’s activities has largely been focused on other states in the Northeast during the last two years, but that its resources can be leveraged to support peacebuilding and conflict resolution between local communities in Manipur,” it said.Ethnic violence began in Manipur in May 2023, and has been going on ever since – killing hundreds, displacing tens of thousands and sharply dividing the state along ethnic lines. In several instances, cases of violence against women have been reported during the conflict.On July 19, 2023, just months after bloody ethnic strife erupted between the Meitei and Kuki communities in the state, a 30-second video clip recorded on May 4 emerged, featuring two Kuki-Zo women being paraded naked and being groped by a sizeable mob of men belonging to the Meitei community in Kangpokpi district.In their testimony to the media, the survivors said that after they were led away by the mob, they were sexually assaulted and raped.
