Imphal: The death of a 46-year-old displaced man inside Sajiwa Relief Camp, Imphal East, has triggered renewed calls for urgent government action to improve living conditions and mental health support for thousands of displaced people in Manipur.
The deceased, identified as Konsam Bumet, was found dead on August 24 in what police and fellow camp residents believe to be a case of suicide. He had been at the camp with his wife, a 14-year-old differently-abled daughter, and a 10-year-old son after being forced to flee their home in Sadu Yengkhuman during last year’s conflict.
Camp residents said Bumet had been struggling with depression for months, weighed down by financial hardship and the grim realities of life in displacement. Families receive only Rs 80 per person per day, an amount many say is insufficient to survive. Overcrowded shelters with little privacy and the disruption of children’s education have added to the distress.
“This is not just about one man. Many of us are suffering silently. The government must help before more lives are lost,” one resident of the camp said.
Civil society groups have long warned that the lack of food, healthcare, education, and psychosocial support in camps could lead to further tragedies. Since ethnic violence broke out on May 3, 2023, more than 60,000 people have been displaced, taking shelter in over 300 camps across the state.
Bumet’s death has once again highlighted the urgent need for authorities to increase relief allowances, improve camp facilities, and provide sustained mental health support for displaced families who continue to live in uncertainty more than a year after the conflict began.
