Chairperson of the Supreme Court appointed Committee on Relief and Rehabilitation in Manipur, Justice Gita Mittal on Friday said that her committee came to Manipur in August, 2023 to oversee the relief and rehabilitation activities of the victims of Manipur violence.
From Delhi, the committee had been conducting daily virtual communication with the displaced people staying at relief camps and other states, she said.
On the sidelines of launching a programme on Friday at Manipur State Film Development Society (MSFDS), she told the media that they visited in August last year and were about to come in December but could not do so due to some security concerns.
Thereafter, they conducted virtually visiting the relief camps regularly, she said, adding that the biggest issue of displaced people is the inability to return back to their homes. They are grateful to the government administration for the facilities which have been provided, but their biggest pain is they want to go home which is difficult; otherwise, other issues have been addressed promptly, she said.
She said special facilities have been provided to pregnant women at special camps but the agony of separation from their families remains.
Over the past months, the government is giving efforts to build prefabricated houses and few cases of restoration to the original home were made possible, she informed, adding that the government evaluated the nature of compensation efforts from the Centre.
She also said that various representations, memorandums have been received before the Supreme Court. The grievances are being resolved, she said. The Committee members and experts are here at different places, she added.
“We virtually joined the administration from Delhi. In this manner, we have been able to address most of the issues,” Gita said. There is a resident commissioner and a team empowered to deal with locals facing difficulties, she added.
Nobody has complained about the lack of access to the Committee while conducting virtual communication from any location, she mentioned. She also said that experts have come all the way from outside the state and are overseeing the victims of conflict in the state. The report submitted to the Supreme Court is also accepted, she added.
It may be mentioned that in August 2023, the Supreme Court had appointed a three-member committee, headed by former Jammu and Kashmir High Court Chief Justice Gita Mittal, to examine the humanitarian aspects of the ethnic violence in Manipur.
