Former Manipur CM Biren Singh claims disparity in development data in hill districts

Manipur : Former Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh has claimed that official data on village growth in the state’s hill districts points to a significant “anomaly”, raising questions about the uneven expansion of villages over the past five decades.
In an infographic shared, Singh compared village statistics from 1972 and 2023 for four hill districts, Kangpokpi, Churachandpur, Senapati and Ukhrul, and argued that the pattern of growth warrants closer examination.
According to the figures cited by the former Chief Minister, the number of villages across the four districts increased from 754 in 1972 to 1,865 in 2023, an addition of 1,111 villages. The data showed that Kangpokpi recorded an increase from 193 villages to 713, while Churachandpur’s count rose from 339 to 874 during the same period.
In contrast, the infographic indicated comparatively modest increases in Senapati and Ukhrul districts. Singh claimed that Kangpokpi and Churachandpur together accounted for nearly 95% of the total increase in villages recorded across the four districts.
Describing the trend as a “village growth anomaly”, the former Chief Minister said the statistics reveal a pattern that deserves further scrutiny. However, he acknowledged that the figures themselves do not establish the reasons behind the growth.
The infographic suggested several possible factors that could have contributed to the increase, including administrative bifurcation of villages, recognition of previously unrecorded settlements, demographic expansion, migration, changing settlement patterns and other governance-related processes.
Singh argued that the scale and concentration of village growth in certain districts indicate the need for a detailed examination of village recognition records, census data, land and revenue documents, historical maps, satellite imagery and migration patterns.
“The anomaly is not a matter of opinion; it is visible in the data,” the former Chief Minister said, adding that understanding the reasons behind the divergent growth trajectories is important for informed discussions on demographic change, land governance and development planning in Manipur.
The claims come amid continuing debates in Manipur over land, demographics, administrative boundaries and settlement patterns, issues that have remained politically sensitive in the state.