NAGALAND : In the small town of Tuli in Nagaland’s Mokokchung district, Lepzungchiba Jamir grew up in severe poverty, surrounded by uncertainty, but driven by ambition. His parents were illiterate, and his father spent long days working as a farmer to support the household. Despite the hardships, Jamir carried a dream of becoming an “officer”.
As a young boy, he often heard people speak about officers with admiration. To him, the title represented success, dignity, and escape from poverty. “I would often tell my father that I would study ‘officer’,” Jamir later recalled. However, his path towards education was extremely difficult. During high school, he could not afford another set of uniform, and in Class IX he attended school for nine months without shoes.
After passing Class X in 2007, someone advised Jamir to enrol in a polytechnic college. It was the first time he had heard about such an institution. Confused about his future and frustrated by poverty, he became deeply anxious. “When I heard about the polytechnic college, I thought it produced officers,” he said, adding, “I had made up my mind that if I did not get to study ‘officer’, I would join a rebel group.”
In 2009, after completing Class XI, Jamir travelled to Kohima for the first time to appear for the polytechnic entrance examination. He secured the eighth rank in the state. Yet, when he checked the available streams, he became confused once again. “I found civil, mechanical, automobile engineering, but not one called ‘officer’,” Jamir said, laughing. “I thought civil engineering would get me a job at a civil hospital, mechanical engineering would make me a mechanic, and automobile engineering would enable me to open a workshop.”
Eventually, he graduated in modern office practice, now known as modern office management, in 2012. Instead of searching for a government job, he devoted himself to social service and public welfare despite facing numerous difficulties.
In 2013, Jamir founded the Nagaland Ecological and Sanitation Management Society (NESMS). For 10 years, it carried out social and developmental work without government aid. NESMS spread awareness about sanitation, HIV/AIDS, and drug abuse, supported elderly people in rural areas, and worked with the Forest Department on plantation drives.
Under his leadership, NESMS earned recognition from the Nagaland government departments and the Centre. The organisation established consultancy services that provided technical guidance to government departments while creating employment and internship opportunities for engineers, architects, science graduates, and educated youth. A milestone came in 2023 when NESMS signed a MoU with the Ministry of Road Transport and Nagaland’s Department of Transport to establish the area’s first Regional Driver Training Centre in Kohima.
Today, Jamir serves as a public relations officer in Nagaland’s Department of Art and Culture for centrally sponsored schemes and employs eleven people, including eight engineers. From attending school in chappals to becoming a respected social entrepreneur, his journey continues to inspire communities across Nagaland.