Yaoshang : My most favourite festival of the state

Yaoshang is a festival which is considered as one among the major festivals of Manipur. People from different communities take part in the celebration of the festival. It is celebrated on the full moon day of the month of Lamta (February-March) and is celebrated for five days.  The​ festival is celebrated with singing, dancing and other traditional performances. It is celebrated with gaiety by the young and old, irrespective of gender and age. This festival represents the celebration of love amongst children, adults and people of all ages.  

 

Let us explore the various ways in which the festival is celebrated during the five days. T​he five-day long celebration will begin with the burning of ‘yaoshang’ (a small thatch hut/straw hut) which is constructed with bamboo and straws on the first day. It will be followed with the collection of donations from households by young boys and girls dressed in their best attires. Children visit from home to home  giving blessings in return of the little gift of money they received from the householders. This is called nakatheng in our Manipuri language. With this, they buy themselves sweets or toffees, share it among themselves with much joy and excitement.  

 

The main highlight of the festival includes the Thabal Chongba, a traditional Manipuri folk dance where boys and girls hold hands and sing and dance in a circle. Thabal Chongba stands for ‘moonlight dance’ and is hence performed during night time. It is a typical Manipuri celebration of get-together by the night under the full moon. Youths in full bloom get along with each other for the dance, be they strangers or not. They share the good moments together along the thumps of music and laughter. This usually takes place on the second day of the festival while it can also take place on the other days of the festival. Married women also organize their Thabal Chongba event during Yaoshang. This is called ‘Mou Thabal’.  

 

Children go to their relatives for nakatheng and block roads with ropes to collect money from people passing by starting the second day. Vaishnavite elders and other local sankirtan bands perform traditional ‘Pala Eshei’ (devotional songs). This is also known as Holi Pala Eshei shakpa. They perform this at various places of worship including the Shree Govindajee Temple, Shree Shree Bijoy Govindaji Temple and other places such as from home to home. They also collect the money which is offered to them when they perform this.  

 

Colours are one ​ o_​ f the significant aspects of the festival; people apply colours on the faces of each other ( aber teinaba) and children splash water among themselves with water guns (pichkari). The second day of Yaoshang is also better known as the ‘ Pichkari numit’ (Pichkari day). This joy and excitement of playing with colours will not shade till the fifth or the last day of the festival. O​ther customs that we observe in the region are taking out a procession to a local temple, playing with colours and offering prayers to the deity. 

 

Most of the localities in the Manipur valley organize sports in its locality grounds and even on roadsides during the five-day Yaoshang. The primary idea behind Yaoshang sports is to stop the energetic youth from indulging in drugs and alcohol and encourage sports and games in the state. Children and youths are given the opportunity to expose their talents in various fields of sports, public appearance, public speaking and socializing people. Y​aoshang sports motivate young ones to explore their talents in different fields.  

 

Various games including indigenous events such as Mukna and Laphu Kabee are seen to be popular during Yaoshang sports. Apart from sporting programmes; academic events like debating competitions, ex tempore speech, song competitions, mathematics competitions, recitations etc are organized in the interests of students. Events like spoon race, tug of war, statue dance, football match, poon pubi, chafu thugaibi, etc are organised for children, teenagers, married women, etc. Yaoshang sports is the time when married women participate the most.  

 

Besides the sports activities, many other activities like Shumang Leela, a traditional theatre play, is also organized in various localities and people fully enjoy it.  

 

One of the most special features of Yaoshang starting the third day is the Mou and Leishabi chak chanaba. Married women and young girls of the locality will contribute their share of money and organize a feast. This is when all the women of the locality will gather and interact with each other. This way of organizing grand feasts at localities has become an integral part of the festival.  

 

Moreover, most of the offices and government departments are closed during the five-day Yaoshang. This builds up a chance for every family to be together with their family members and children. Yaoshang denotes the coming of the spring season . It is the best time of the year in Manipur as it is usually the time when the sun shines along with trifles of rain rarely in between, where gush of strong winds blow, trees and shrubs all green, flowers bloom bright, birds sing and people look forward to each coming beautiful day.  

State Government launches PM-SVANIDHI scheme for the street vendors' welfare

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant lockdown led to the closure of all markets in Manipur to curb the spread of the disease in the state. The world has been crying ever since the virus emerged in Wuhan, China. We can now say we have almost adapted to this present situation. 

While we are all busy taking care of ourselves and following the norms to stay safe and away from the virus, the street vendors or the daily bread earners are struggling for a moment and for a place to earn by selling  something. Some of the migrant workers who have been working at certain places to earn are left helpless while some have returned to their own places with no means of earning. The struggle is real for them to feed their families as COVID-19 threatens their livelihood.

Beneficiaries belonging to 33 states/Union Territories (UTs) including Meghalaya which have been notified rules and scheme under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014 are eligible for the scheme. 

The scheme is available to street vendors engaged in vending in urban areas as on or before 24^th March, 2020. They should possess certificate of vending/ identity cards issued by Urban Local Bodies (ULBs). For those who have not issued certificate of vending/ identity cards, the ULBs are encouraged to issue the same immediately within a period of one month.  The ULBs play a vital role in implementation of  the PM-SVANidhi.

Vendors from rural/ peri-urban areas/ city dwellers who have returned back to resume their business after leaving the urban areas due to the pandemic are eligible for the scheme’s loan fulfilling the eligibility criteria. 

Digital platform with web portal and mobile application are developed to ensure fast and transparent implementation of PM-SVANidhi.

Under the PM-SVANidhi scheme, the Chief Minister of Manipur has disbursed loans to 368 beneficiaries/ street vendors on 25^th August, 2020. Including 16 beneficiaries from Hill Districts, the Chief Minister has also disbursed loans to 449 regular licensed vendors along with loans under the PMMY scheme.

Covering 24 urban local bodies of Manipur, the Chief Minister has again disbursed loans to 803 beneficiaries/ street vendors for the second batch of PM-SVANidhi scheme.

Under the PMMY scheme, the Chief Minister has disbursed loans to 466 regular licensed vendors and other micro business units including 5 beneficiaries from the Hill District Headquarters. 

In Manipur, 5,354 vendors have been benefitted so far under PM-SVANidhi and PMMY schemes. The state government has set a target of extending assistance to a total of 20,000 street vendors who have been vending in urban areas on or before 24^th March, 2020 under the PM-SVANidhi scheme. Currently, Manipur is ranked first among Hill and North Eastern States category in implementation of PM-SVANidhi for the highest number of loans disbursed till date.

Development of women markets at seven hill districts

Our generation has seen a great deal of upliftment in the status of women. We see women taking up important roles in every sphere of life. Now, we have women boldly raising their voice in politics, playing their part in administration, bringing laurels for the nation in the field of games and sports. Their achievements do not end here. Women empowerment has given a huge impetus to gender equality thereby creating more job opportunities for women. Today, we witness  a number of hardworking women running their households without relying on their husbands. We even have women taking part in the public transport system now. Not only in the socio-political sphere, but also in the socio-economic sphere, the status of women has improved considerably. These are the powerful and strong women of Manipur.

 Most of us in Manipur must have heard of the Ima Keithel or the Ima Market in Imphal, Manipur. It is a market run exclusively by women and is currently located in Khwairamband Bazaar, Imphal. It is a commercial centre and a popular tourist attraction in the state of Manipur. It is also the largest all-women market in Asia. It is well known for offering wide array of products from local farms, artisanal crafts and delicious foods. 

With the increasing role of women in both social and economic spheres, it has become imperative on the government to create facilities and infrastructures to create conditions for women to flourish both socially and economically. The need of the hour is construction of market places in other hill districts too. This is because we have hard working women not only in adjoining areas of Imphal but also in different areas of the state.  

The State Government has taken special care to improve infrastructure in the hill districts. This is a great step to bridge the gap between hill-valley divide. The government has constructed and inaugurated seven women markets at Churachandpur, Ukhrul, Jiribam, Kangpokpi, Tamenglong, Senapati and Chandel district headquarters. Manipur Police Housing Corporation Limited constructed the women markets under the One Time Special Assistance of Central Plan Scheme,2017-18. It was able to be completed within a short period of time.

The construction of the market buildings was under a broad objective to cater public needs and convenience. It was also to specifically provide immense economic opportunities to rural women who had always been a part of the rural economy in many ways.

Let us now explore the newly constructed women markets with a trip through this writing. The first one is the women market at the Churachandpur district headquarter. It is named as “Nute Bazaar” (Women market). It was inaugurated by the Honourable Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi on 16^th March, 2018 and has been functioning since then. The market sells local fruits, vegetables and cosmetics. It has an accommodation of 178 women vendors.

The “Women’s Market” (Women market) at the Ukhrul district headquarter was inaugurated by the Honourable Chief Minister of Manipur, N Biren Singh on 24^th April, 2018 and has been functioning since then. The market has open commercial slots on the ground floor and other stalls on the first floor to accommodate 210 women vendors.

The inauguration of the women market at Jiribam headquarter was done by the Honourable Chief Minister of Manipur on 19^th September,2018. It is named as the “Jiri Ima Keithel” (Women market) and has an accommodation of 180 women vendors.

The “Nute Kailhang” (Women market) at the Kangpokpi district headquarter was inaugurated by the Honourable Chief Minister of Manipur on 19^th October,2018. The market has been functional and beneficial not only to the people of the district but also to the people who come to visit there. It has an accommodation of 210 women vendors.

The “Rani Gaidinliu Women Market” (Women market) at the Tamenglong headquarter was inaugurated by the Honourable Chief Minister of Manipur on 30^th October,2018. It has been functioning greatly accommodating 173 women vendors. To mention, Rani Gaidinliu was an iconic woman of Northeast India. She was a Naga spiritual and political leader who led a revolt against British rule in India. 

The “Apfii Saliki” (Women market) at the Senapati district headquarter was inaugurated by the Honourable Chief Minister of Manipur on 30^th October, 2018. It has been functioning since then accommodating 210 women vendors.

The “Women market” at Japhou Bazar of Chandel district headquarter was inaugurated by the Honourable Chief Minister of Manipur on 16^th January,2019. This has also been functioning greatly accommodating 210 women vendors.

The hills in Manipur offer nature lovers an enchanting sight which keeps them wondering. With its surreal beauty, they provide a sense of serenity to the onlookers. The hill districts in Manipur have become popular tourist destinations for people all over the world. The hill districts create a unique brand of beauty which is not seen elsewhere. Like, Ukhrul is known for its beautiful hills, its beautiful flower called the Shirui Lily, its different caves, etc.

We have the “Ima Keithel” in the hub of Imphal city which has become a tourist place in Manipur. The addition of all the other new women markets in the different hill districts of Manipur is a great step taken up by the Government for the people in the hill districts.  This will also help in expanding the economy of the state.

 The local products of the different hill districts can now be sold in their own market places. Earlier, they used to transport all these products to be sold at the Ima Market in Imphal. This inconvenience has been reduced to some extent as of now. Also, there are certain special products of their own areas like the popular “Sirarakhong chilly” of Ukhrul,  oranges of Tamenglong, lemons of Kachai (Ukhrul district). The different hill districts will be able to showcase and sell off their own special products in their own areas without transporting it to other places. This will help them cut down the transportation expenses. Even the products from Imphal area can be sent to their markets, facilitating trade exchange within the state. The women vendors now no longer face hardships of sun and shower as they have got shelter at the market places. This step taken up by the government is like giving a home to the homeless.

As Manipur lacks much of the resources in contributing to tourism, the development of the different markets at different hill areas of the state will help in contributing to tourism development.