For days, the government in Manipur had been preparing for a “VVIP visit”, but both the Centre and state government had refrained from any official confirmation on Prime Minister Narendra Modi visiting the strife-torn state, his first since the ongoing conflict began in May 2023. However, on Friday morning, residents found posters welcoming the PM erected overnight across Imphal and Churachandpur, the two towns he is scheduled to visit. By the afternoon, the Chief Secretary announced that Modi would be arriving on Saturday afternoon for a few hours.
In a post on X on Friday night, the PM wrote, “I will be attending programmes in Churachandpur and Imphal tomorrow. We are fully committed to furthering inclusive and all-round development of Manipur. The foundation stone for road projects, National Highway projects, women hostels and more would be laid. The projects being inaugurated include the Civil Secretariat at Mantripukhri, the IT SEZ Building and the New Police Headquarters at Mantripukhri, a unique all-women’s market in various districts.”
I will be attending programmes in Churachandpur and Imphal tomorrow, 13th September. We are fully committed to furthering inclusive and all-round development of Manipur. The foundation stone for road projects, National Highway projects, women hostels and more would be laid. The…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 12, 2025
Over the course of around three hours, Modi will visit Churachandpur, the headquarters of the Kuki-Zo majority Churachandpur district, and Imphal, the state capital located in the Meitei majority valley. He is scheduled to interact with people displaced by the conflict and make public addresses, as part of which he will inaugurate and lay foundation stones for various projects. Ahead of his visit, coming after 27 months of conflict in the state in which over 270 have died and over 57,000 have been displaced, the mood on the ground swings between anticipation and apprehension.
In Churachandpur town, the PM is scheduled to land in a helicopter at a BSF facility. From there, he will travel by road to the Churachandpur Peace Ground, the venue for the main event, in what officials have referred to as a 5-kilometre “road show.” The preparations for this have been underway in full swing, and on Thursday, the administration and workers were decorating the stretch with colourful flags and fabric mounted on bamboo frames.
At the Peace Ground, a massive structure has been erected with a seating capacity of 10,000. According to a security official, on September 13, the town will be fortified with multiple layers of security from the police, CRPF, BSF, Assam Rifles and Army, and the total number of personnel deployed in the town will be around 10,000. Those who will be in attendance include people displaced by the conflict, selected by the district administration. They will be in an enclosure, and the PM is expected to interact with them before addressing the gathering.
This would be the first visit to the town by a PM since Rajiv Gandhi in 1988.
“I think most people do welcome the visit because we have been wanting for so long for our suffering to be acknowledged. But many people are opposed to this being treated as a celebration, and instead want it to be an opportunity for us to be heard and to convey our political demands,” said a young activist in the town, not wanting to be identified.
On Thursday night, a group of youth tore down some of the preparatory decorations in the town and clashed with police trying to disperse them. This was followed by condemnation by organisations and a call by the Kuki Students’ Organisation for a “public curfew” from Friday evening to Saturday morning.
The past week has seen several meetings among Kuki-Zo organisations and the authorities to anticipate and address last-minute surprises. Authorities had to grapple with the Joint Student Body, a Kuki-Zo student outfit, placing a set of empty coffins outside the Peace Ground with photographs of those from the community who lost their lives. There had also been plans to wear black, as a sign of mourning, when the PM arrives.
Authorities decided this would not be suitable and convened a meeting between prominent civil society outfits and senior security personnel on Tuesday morning. The coffins were removed that afternoon, and all groups agreed that people attending the roadshow and the event would wear the traditional attire of the tribes.
Kuki-Zo Council chairman Henlianthang Thanglet said that the heads of tribal bodies have been tasked with mobilising audiences. “In meetings with different stakeholders, we have emphasised that he is the one who has the power to give us our demand for separate administration,” he said.
In Imphal, public engagement has been lower. The PM is scheduled to fly in a helicopter from Churachandpur and land directly at the venue, Kangla Fort, which has been fortified with security and closed to the public starting Friday. There, too, selected displaced people will be in attendance in a special enclosure, officials said, and the total seating capacity being arranged is for 15,000.
Sources said that 1,000 of those in attendance will be government employees, and that BJP MLAs have been tasked with mobilising another 20,000 people from their constituencies and arranging for their transport to the venue.
After addressing the gathering at Kangla Fort, the PM is scheduled to move directly to Imphal Airport, from where he will fly to Assam, where he has further engagements.
There have also been boycott calls from some corners, including the Coordination Committee (CorCom), a conglomerate of seven Valley-based militant outfits, because of which Imphal’s Ima Market and some other shopping areas would be shut on Saturday.
The NDA MLAs, who have been pushing for the removal of President’s Rule and the restoration of a popular government, meanwhile, remain optimistic. “It is a positive sign. A smooth visit would be an indication that the time is appropriate for government formation,” said a valley-based BJP MLA.
