Smart Enclaves in the Borderland

Abstract

Imphal, the capital city of Manipur, was one of 100 cities awarded bids in India’s Smart Cities Mission (SCM). The extension of the SCM to the borderland is an extension of zone-logic, enrolling the recalcitrant frontier into economic networks that cross India. Through a reading of Imphal’s smart city bid and implementation strategy, this chapter makes three main arguments. First, unlike zone-making projects in other parts of Asia where local elites, brokers, and/or local governments doggedly pursue the granting of zones, the extension of the SCM to Imphal has been driven more by obligation than desire. Second, the idea of an “open city” is counter to the lived reality of surveillance, checkpoints, and limits on mobility and assembly that characterise life in the city. Third, Imphal’s meagre bid and lack of preparedness is barely relevant to the smart city award, as the geopolitical imperatives outweigh all other factors.