Essential supplies are expected to flow again through Naga-dominated districts after the embargo’s suspension took effect Thursday evening.
BY PC Bureau
September 12, 2025 — The United Naga Council (UNC), the apex Naga body in Manipur, has announced a temporary suspension of its ongoing ‘trade embargo’ in Naga-inhabited areas after an appeal from the state government.
The embargo, which had disrupted the supply of goods across highways in Naga-dominated districts, was launched last week to protest the Centre’s plans to fence portions of the Indo-Myanmar border. The UNC argued that such fencing, without prior consultation, would divide Naga villages straddling the border and threaten traditional land and community ties.
The breakthrough followed a letter sent on Wednesday by the Manipur government urging the UNC to withdraw its agitation and inviting its leaders for dialogue. An Emergency Presidential Council Meeting of the UNC was convened at Tahamzam in Senapati district to deliberate on the appeal.
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“The EPC appreciated the government’s acknowledgement of previous engagements with the Ministry of Home Affairs and its assurance that prior consultation will be held with the UNC and other stakeholders before any fencing works are taken up,” the UNC said in a statement, adding that it had resolved to suspend the embargo in response.
Manipur Chief Secretary Puneet Kumar Goel confirmed that the Centre had taken note of the concerns raised and reiterated that the Ministry of Home Affairs would continue dialogue with all stakeholders. “The next round of tripartite talks between the UNC, the Centre, and the state government will be scheduled at a mutually convenient date and venue,” he said.
While the suspension has brought immediate relief, uncertainty lingers in the hills. Many Naga civil society groups remain wary, recalling previous assurances by the government that failed to translate into concrete action. Border fencing, they argue, threatens to divide ancestral lands and cut off cross-border kinship ties with Nagas in Myanmar — a matter of identity as much as territory.
Political observers say the UNC’s decision reflects a careful balancing act: avoiding confrontation during a sensitive political moment while keeping pressure on both the state and Centre. With Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first visit to Manipur since the 2023 ethnic violence just days away, the embargo’s suspension is being read as a gesture of goodwill — but one that could be quickly reversed if trust is broken.
