manipur
\nA strike and protests erupted in Manipur on Sunday, hours after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the restive northeastern state.
\nPM Modi on Saturday made his first visit to troubled Manipur state since more than 250 people were killed in ethnic clashes there two years ago. Students at Manipur University staged protests and chanted \u2018Go Back Modi\u2019 during the PM\u2019s visit. Meanwhile, police fired rubber bullets and tear gas at the peaceful protesters, leaving dozens injured.
\nModi\u2019s visit is part of a three-day tour that also includes Assam, which borders Bangladesh, and Bihar, India\u2019s third-most populous state with at least 130 million people. Bihar is a key electoral battleground ahead of polls slated for October or November, the only state in India\u2019s northern Hindi-speaking heartland where Modi\u2019s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has never ruled alone.
\nIt is also India\u2019s poorest, and Modi was set to unveil investments worth $8 billion, a package that includes agricultural projects, rail links, road upgrades and an airport terminal.
\nManipur in the northeast has been bitterly divided since May 2023, when violence broke out between the mainly Hindu Meitei majority and the largely Christian Kuki community.
\nThe violence has also displaced tens of thousands of people who are still living in makeshift camps established by the government.
\n\u201cIn order to bring life back on track in Manipur, the government of India is making all possible efforts,\u201d Modi yesterday told a gathering of thousands in Churachandpur, a Kuki-dominated town.
\n\u201cI promise you today that I\u2019m with you. The government of India is with the people of Manipur,\u201d Modi had said, while also appealing \u201cto all groups to take the path of peace for realising their dreams\u201d.
\nModi was also scheduled to address a rally at Imphal, the Meitei-dominated capital of the state.
\nThe premier last visited the state\u2013bordering Myanmar and 1,700 kilometres (1,050 miles) from New Delhi\u2013in 2022.
\nThe Hindu nationalist leader inaugurated development projects worth more than $960 million, including five highways and a new police headquarters.
\nManipur\u2019s former chief minister, N Biren Singh, from Modi\u2019s BJP, resigned in February after criticism he failed to stop the bloodshed there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
manipur A strike and protests erupted in Manipur on Sunday, hours after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the restive northeastern state. PM Modi on Saturday made his first visit to troubled Manipur state since more than 250 people were killed in ethnic clashes there two years ago. Students at Manipur University staged protests and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":502910,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-502895","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n