Behiang is a

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

village in

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

on the boundary with

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

. With roughly 1,000 size population, this village snakes for about along the Tedim road. Majority of the local population belongs to the Zou(Thangkal)

History of Behiang

Tuan Thawng Leivang Ngaihte purchased the Behiang range along with the chieftainship of Behiang village from Langzachin Manlun, chief of Behiang village in 1922 by paying a sum of Rs.100/-(Rupees one hundred) with one Mithun. The then Sub-divisional officer/south West B.C.Gasper approved the transaction of chieftainship from Langzachin Manlun to Tuan Thawng Ngaihte in case No.43/SW of 1922-23 dated 28 January 1923. Further, the Assistant President, Manipur State Darbar (Hill) confirmed B.C.Gasper's order vides case No. 444-South dated 28 January 1923. Behiang village is 24 kilometers away from Singngat sub-divisional headquarters to the south on the Indian - Myanmar border. After the dead of Tuan Thawng Leivang Ngaihte his son Lian Za Mung Leivang Ngaihte became the village chief.

Successors of Behiang village chief

Tuan Thawng Leivang Ngaihte (1922–1957) Lian Za Mung Leivang Ngaihte (1958–1973) Lian Za Mung Leivang Ngaihte
Lian Za Mung Leivang Ngaihte died leaving behind his minor son master Thawng Son Mang to succeed his will. But Thawng Son Mang being minor, the Family Household Council (Indongta) members decided that Pau Do Mang, son of Chin Kam, who was the youngest brother of Tuan Thawng Leivang Ngaihte should be the guardian of the minor Thawng Sawm Mang and act as the village chief. Master Thawng Son Mang abdicated the chieftainship by executing a special power of attorney in 1980 under which option was given to him either to remain as chief, or to hand over the chieftainship to Pau Do Mang. Master Thawng Son Mang opted to hand over the chieftainship to Pau Do Mang. Thus, Pau Do Mang became the chief since 1980. The Government of Manipur had given recognition to the chieftainship of Pau Do Mang Leivang Ngaihte vide order by the Governor of Manipur No. CHCH/4/86 date 12.2.2004 published in the Manipur Gazette Extra Ordinary No. 396 date 18.2.2004 and No.CHCH/4/86 (Pt) date 5.12.2006.57. Pau Do Mang Leivang Ngaihte (1974-till date)

Ruins of World War II

Constructed during World War II, the Tedim road passes through this village, and it connects the Indian city of

Imphal Imphal (; , ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (officially known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the former Kingdom of Manipur, surrounded by a ...

and the Burmese town of

Tedim Tedim (, , (Tedim language, Zo: ''Tedim Khuapi'', pronounced ; is a town and the administrative seat of Tedim Township in Chin State, Myanmar. It is the second largest town in Chin State, after Hakha (the capital city of Chin State). The town's f ...

. A contingent of the

Japanese army The , , also referred to as the Japanese Army, is the land warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Created on July 1, 1954, it is the largest of the three service branches. New military guidelines, announced in December 2010, direct t ...

took this road which was then still under construction. So, the Allied Forces destroyed some bridges on the Tedim road in order to check the advance of the Japanese troops. Ruins of British built bridges still remain near Behiang and surrounding villages like

Tonzang Tonzang is a town and the administrative seat of Tonzang Township in Chin State, Myanmar. Tonzang is the second most populous town in Tedim District of Chin State. The town was captured by the Chin National Army The Chin National Army (; abbr ...

and Zangnuam.

The Old BSF Camp & the New AR Camp, Behiang

Behiang used to have a regular camp of India's

Border Security Force The Border Security Force (BSF) is a central armed police force in India under the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is responsible for guarding India’s borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh. It was formed in the wake of the Indo-Pak War of 196 ...

until recently. The Camp site is located on a lovely and commanding hill lock over the left bank of the Tuivai River overlooking the entire village and a major portion of the international border. The BSF were withdrawn from their camp in December 1998 during the midst of the ethnic clashes between Kuki - Paite tribes. In June 2006, the

Assam Rifles The Assam Rifles (AR) is a paramilitary force of India responsible for border security, counter-insurgency, and maintaining law and order in Northeast India and in Jammu & Kashmir in lines of Rashtriya Rifles. Its primary duty involves guard ...

(AR) were stationed in Behiang and they started constructing a new camp site which was officially occupied in January 2008. The AR Camp is currently located on the southern side of the village close to the Khenman boundary.

Border Trade Centre Approved By Union Government

Khenman is the nearest Burmese village from Behiang. For a number of decades, a brisk

border trade Border trade, in general, refers to the flow of goods and services across the border between different jurisdictions. In this sense, border trade is a part of the normal trade that flows through the ordinary export/import legal and logistical fra ...

has been carried out unofficially at this border village. Despite its potential, this bazaar village still lacks the

infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and pri ...

to develop into a booming commercial town. Aimed at boosting the Indo-Myanmar border trade, the Central Government of India had approved the setting up of an Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Behiang on 27 May 2012. On 3 October 2012, the State's Minister of Commerce and Industry, Konthoujam Govindas and the MLA of Singngat, GS Haupu accompanied by officials visited Behiang to ascertain land availability for the construction of the proposed Border Trade Center which is also part of the Union Government's Look East Policy. The visiting team has finalized a land area of 10 acres for the construction of the trade centre.

Local Economy

Behiang has a strong network of mercantile families who live off the Indo-Burma border trade. Several others have family members working in the Indian Army, Para-Military Forces and a few each in the State and Center Govt. service. Yet more than half of the local population engages in agricultural labour - either swidden (jhum) or wet rice cultivation. All arable land along the Tuivai river have been brought under paddy cultivation. Food shortage during the lean season just before harvest usually is met by the surplus rice produced by Burmese jhum farmers.

References

External links

"Behiang in India"

"Behiang village"
{{Border Crossings of Myanmar Villages in Churachandpur district India–Myanmar border crossings