Fr. Johnny told me that the
Sunday service would be at 8.30 am. I had to miss the service since I was to
leave by 6 am. Therefore, last evening I had taken leave of the Bishop and all
the priests. Rev Fr James Thoppil, the Bishop, mistook me to be an
ex-serviceman when he first saw me at his door! In a short while, they had all
become good friends. When I told them that I would, most likely, be there again
on 7 May, they welcomed me to stay once again in the Bishop’s House. I was told
that they had played host to two ladies who had come to Kohima on bikes from
Kerala during the Hornbill festival.
I was not prepared for the
cold in Kohima. I did not change to night clothes last night since the room was
also cold. However, the geyser worked and I bathed in piping hot water to get
my limbs moving; fingers and toes were almost frozen. By 5.30 am it was bright
and hence, I left earlier than I had scheduled to. When I travelled from Kohima
to Imphal in November 2010 I was warned not to do the surface crossing as the
situation was very tense. Underground units were having a free run and the
states were recovering from a prolonged economic ban. However, the situation
currently is quite different. I motored along quite freely on the 135 km
Kohima-Imphal road, slowing down at bad stretches of road that were frequent. A
journey that should be done in two hours took nearly four hours. There are
markers at many locations of the road, closer to Kohima reminding one of the
heavy action that the area witnessed during WWII. Casualties were heavy too and
the Kohima war cemetery is testimony to that. I passed the Mao gate, the border
of Manipur, in an hour. Closer to Imphal I found ladies and children holding
ropes across the road for passing vehicles to give them some money. Apparently
the Yausang festival, akin to Holi, was being celebrated where local groups
hold sports meets and community functions.
I had programmed to spend
some time in Imphal for two reasons; one, to meet up with Kunj Behari Singh, a
friend and course mate for graduation in Loyola College, Chennai between 1975
and 1978 and two, greet Fr CM Joseph, who had been the parish priest of the
Imphal cathedral church when I visited in November 2010. KB Singh gave me clear
directions about the meeting point in Imphal. As is my wont, I missed it and
had to return to another reset patiently by KB Singh. After working many years outside
the state he had returned to Manipur to start his own venture. By 2010 he
closed down his hatchery in frustration, plagued by infrastructural
bottlenecks. I was glad to know that he had restarted his venture and is doing
well. His wife works for the government and his children are pursuing their own
dreams.
KB Singh took me to the
Imphal cathedral, where we were told that Fr CM Joseph has shifted to the St.
Thomas Seminary as its spiritual director. I then remembered that I had met in
2010 Rev Fr Joseph Mittathany, who had established the diocese in 1980. I
took a chance and went to the residence just behind the cathedral. The former Archbishop
was there and was meeting few nuns who had gone there to greet him. He
remembered our last meeting and even recollected that I stayed in Thevara,
where I was at the time. He took us back to the time when he had come over to
Manipur in 1980 and the efforts that he had taken to establish the cathedral
and the formations throughout Manipur. The church had lost six of its priests
to bullets over the years. That was how difficult the times were.
Attached to the seminary is
a residence for retired priests. I met Fr. CM Joseph there along with four of
the older priests, all Keralites. One of them, aged 90, was the first
missionary in Manipur. The experiences of each one of them are a saga in
itself. The selflessness and the yeoman service have helped transform society
over the years. It was a touching meeting and I found it difficult to tear
myself away. I wanted to spend more time to flesh out their experiences,
invaluable in understanding the changes that have come about in the societies.
However, two hours had gone by and I had to leave. I was also told that the
movement between Imphal and Moreh is best done between 8 am and 5 pm when the
army conducts patrols; the area is still sensitive. -
I wanted to head for Moreh
only after fuelling. This was another new experience. In 2010 I was told that I
would not be able to get fuel in Imphal and hence, had to depend on the
transport provided by a contact in the Intelligence Bureau for local visits.
This time KB Singh took me to an NRL outlet, marketed by BPCL, and I tanked up.
Before taking leave of KB Singh he gave me the contact number of Bobby who had
arranged accommodation for me in the Trade Centre, under the aegis of the
Ministry of Commerce.
The 110 km route to Moreh was
is good condition but is studded with checks points, all manned by Assam
Rifles. I had to make entries in a few points. At the Tengnouphal check point I
had not noticed the check point and was waved down some distance away at a
picket and asked to return to make the entry. When I was supplying information
for the entries one of the guys there provocatively told me that I should not
have overshot the check point as I was educated! The check point was a small
tented enclosure that could barely accommodate two and had no sign boards
indicating that it is one. At another I was told by one of the sentries that I
should not do the trip alone since it is a ‘disturbed’ area.
I checked into the VIP room
of the Trade Centre in Moreh by 2 pm. With time on my hands I decided to do a
reconnaissance survey of the Customs and border controls. They were less than 2
kms away from my place of stay. At the Land Customs Station, which was closed,
I was told that I must make arrangements for the personnel to be available at
the time I wanted! Bobby, who had made the arrangements at the Trade Centre,
told me that he had already reuested the officials to be available by 8 am.
Then I went up to the Friendship Bridge, from where I could see the Myanmar
border control.
As I was returning to the
guest house I felt hungry and stopped at a small shop where a lady was washing
plates. She gave me a bowlful of chow mein. I do not what it had but was tasty.
It cost me Rs. 20. I returned to the room to do the laundry and complete
updates on Facebook. By 5 pm the sun was more benign and I took a short walk in
the Moreh market, which is known for its large business in foreign goods.
Business was brisk even on a Sunday. Later I went to a small eatery and had
rice, dal and chicken for dinner.
From Cochin to the border
town of Moreh I have driven nearly 4170 kms in 9 days. Diesel fuel has been the
cheapest in Nagaland at 49.14 and costliest in Andhra Pradesh at 58.84.
Tomorrow I expect to cross over to Myanmar and will return only after two
months.
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