However, in the midst of great trouble taken by the transport department in requisitioning vehicles for election, daily wage earners who commute from far off villages to Khwairamband Bazar are now facing problems due to limited transportation service.
State transport director, BK Sharma told IFP that the state has about two lakh registered vehicles out which about 1,40,000 are two-wheelers, 30,000 are auto-rickshaws and 25,000 are light vehicles. Trucks and buses comprise of only about five percent of the total number of vehicles in the state.
The transport department is also planning to requisition more trucks and buses from neighbouring states of Assam and Nagaland, he noted.
Sharma also maintained that more number of light commercial and private vehicles will be requisitioned for the ensuing election.
Highlighting the transportation woes faced by the daily wage earners, a news correspondent of Image TV Kakching stated that he used to send the video tapes to his office from Imphal by bus, but he is unable to send the tapes due to limited bus service.
A businesswoman Sanatombi maintained that she came a long way from Kakching to Imphal by an early morning bus, but she could not find any bus at the parking in Imphal after she came back from Khwairamband Bazar.
Meanwhile, 20 mini buses, 22 heavy trucks, 57 Shaktiman trucks, 30 buses, 26 Tata Magic vehicles, 22 Tata Winger vehicles and 24 Tata 407 lorries requisitioned by the state transport department have been dispatched to Ukhrul, Tamenglong, Churachandpur and Chandel for the purpose of transporting polling personnel.