Manipur, the land of jewels, gateway to east India, bordered on the north, west and south by the hill tracts of Nagaland, Assam and Mizoram is identified by some historians as the setting for episodes of the Mahabharata epic. The land of misty mornings, mountains and plains that lies just next of Burma. Manipur, with an area of 22,327 sq. km. had been a Union Territory from 1956 and a full-fledged state from 1972. The state language 'Manipuri' was recognised as a national language under Eight Schedule of the Indian Constitution in 1992 [1].

Having situated in the easternmost corner of India, the wave of journalism could be felt only in the early part of 1920s. It is believed that, newspapers published from Calcutta have a great influence on the masses thereby signalling the idea of journalism in the state of Manipur. It may be pointed out that, geographical isolation, communication bottleneck, backwardness of the people may be some of the reasons for the lackadaisical development of the forth estate in Manipur.

History has it that, 'Meitei Chanu' was the first print journal in Manipur [2]. It was edited by Hijam Irabot Singh during 1925-26. However, the journal could not survived long and it vanished away from the news stand after 5/6 issues were brought out. In 1933, another paper 'Dainik Manipur' was published under the editorship of Gokulchandra at the Churachand Printing Press. The paper was believed to be widely read not only in Manipur but also in Assam and neighbouring states. The publication discussed about religions, custom and traditions and political structure of the time. The newspaper, with a daily circulation of about 1,000 copies was known for its critical views against the then British Government in Manipur. The result was that, the newspaper had to be closed after five years of publication under the diktat of the Government.

In 1937, yet another newspaper 'Manipur Matam' was published from Tarun Press. The paper, edited by Rajkumar Shitaljit Singh hardly survived for about three years. It has a circulation of around 300 copies a day and was also believed to be circulated in Assam. By the early parts of 1939, a bi-weekly paper 'Manipur Paojel' was launched in Manipur. In those days, cases against journalists were not uncommon. Because of the Press in Manipur were a part of the Freedom Movement, the Government of the day came down heavily on them. K. Kunjabihari, an independent journalist was summoned by the Manipur Darbar and Sadar Panchayat. He became the first ever journalist in the State to have been put under bar. Due to a strong stand taken by the then British Government against the press, publication of newspaper/magazines were virtually impossible in those days. However, a concerted effort were made to bring out newspaper/magazine against all odds. In 1948, one year after India won her Freedom, a weekly magazine 'Praja' was published under the editorship of Loitam Yaima. A new chapter of journalism was witnessed after India won Independence from the British rule.

Publication in those days were characterised by the credo : 'come and ago'. They were unable to survive for long. The unsupportive nature of the Government made the situation worse to the fullest extent. Awareness among the masses was abysmal. As such, the readership potential was very low. Besides, absence of infrastructure stood as a hurdle for the development of the press. It was, indeed, a hard time for media community in the history of journalism in Manipur. Above all, the standard of journalism was low primarily because of the non-availability of professionally - trained journalists. Nevertheless, a beginning was set with courage and enthusiasm.

STATEHOOD AND THE PRESS :
The State of Manipur witnessed a sudden increase of newspapers and magazines after the attainment of full-fledged state in 1972. There was a big wave of journalism brewing in all parts of the State. The people of Manipur, particularly the 'hoi polloi' started to understand the importance of media in development process. Awareness among the public was visibly increasing. A new gear of media spirit was added to the journalists' community following the attainment of statehood. It is, therefore, no surprising to see the number of newspapers and magazines increasing by leaps and bounds. In the process, a new trend of journalism took its shape with political parties taking keen interest in media. K. Sanatomba observed that "of the newspaper now in circulation in Manaipur, at least 50% of them are mouthpiece of one or the other political group" [3] No wonder that, editor of some newspapers and magazines are active player of politics.

Comparatively, the qualities and standard of newspapers and magazines till recently were poor in contents and reporting, or both. Most of the daily newspapers, both in Vernacular and English were of only 2 pages printed in a poor quality demi-size paper. What can be regarded as a positive development taking place after attainment of statehood was the mushrooming of newspapers and magazines. Statistic shows that, there were only six daily papers at the beginning of 1972. There was none in respect of weekly papers during the time. The increasing number of newspapers is transparently clear from the fact that, by the end of 1982, there were as many as 27 dailies and 13 weekly papers circulating in all parts of Manipur. Thus, during the decade 1972-82, daily newspapers has increased by 77.7 per cent.

The following table shows the trend of the growth, development and evolution of newspapers taking place in the state during the decade, 1972-82.

Yet, the mushrooming of newspapers is like a natural phenomenon for the press in Manipur. By the end of 1984, there were 33 daily newspapers and 14 weeklies circulating in all four corners of the State. A manifold increased in the number of newspapers in the State may be due to rising standard to the people, increasing mass awareness and more importantly, the recognition of journalism as a profession.

PRESENT STATE-OF-AFFAIRS:
The press in Manipur is in the process of developing stage. There has been a sharp improvement in terms of reporting, writing, presentation, designing, etc. during the last 10 years. Today, there are more than 40 daily newspapers circulating in the state which caters to the reading needs of different sections of society. The technological advancement has brought a sea-changed in journalism of Manipur. It is interesting to note that, a new publication is hitting the news stand every year during the past decade. In 1996, an English daily 'Imphal Free Press' took the state by storm when it hit the news stand with a modern touch. Soon, it was followed by many papers without losing time. At present, most of the newspapers are now produced at Offset Press, leaving behind the age of 'Letter Printing Press' as an old story.

Another daily newspaper 'The Sangai Express' is the most recent, most popular and widely circulated print media in Manipur. With the onset of Offset Printing Press, there has been a stiff competition amongst newspapers in terms of printing quality and designing. Going by the standard of the publication, 'Sangai Express' has gone a national class. Like many national newspapers, this paper go forward to print pictures in colour and even brought out a supplement for the readers. No doubt, Manipur has witnessed a new era of journalism thanks to technological advancement.

However, media in the state has come under sever attack from the militants in recent years. While the government pleaded helplessness, journalists working in the State are frequently bearing the brunt of militancy. This state-of-affairs is however not confined only in Manipur, but to the extend of the whole of the North East region. The merciless killing of H.A.Lalrohlu, editor of Hmar daily 'Shan', Brajamani Singh, editor of Manipur News and Khupkholian Simte, editor of Lenlai magazine stands as a testimony to the fact that, media has come under strong attack from the militants. What is more, journalists in the state are in constant pressure not only from the insurgents, but from the government establishment, student organizations and also from the non-governmental organisations, to name a few. It is fear that, the progress and development of media in the state may be out of steam under the present circumstances if proper steps are not initiated by those in authority on time.

References:
1. Constitution (71st Amendment) Act, 1992.
2. Sanatomba, K. : Journalism in Manipur, CMM/YMCA
3. Ibid, pp14.