IMPHAL, April 26: The local populace of the areas surrounding Singda Dam today while welcoming the state Chief Minister’s recent inspection of the Singda Dam and warning to evict encroachers from the Dam area assured all possible help to the Government for the beautification and development of the area.
The locals held a public meeting at the Singda Bazar Board this morning participated by representatives of the New Singtha Bazar Development Committee, the Kadangband Part I Khun (village) Committee, Singtha Naharol Yaipha Thouni Kanglup, Singda-Kadangband Meira Paibi Lup and others.
It may be mentioned that the Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh along with Irrigation & Flood Control Department Minister Ngamthang Haokip had inspected the Singda Dam on April 18 wherein he had announced that the government will evict encroachers in the Singda Dam area in the first week of May.
The local support has however come with a rider which says that even though the people will help the Government in evicting the houses and farms lying inside the boundary of the dam; the government cannot consider the houses and shops which are outside the boundary and the main gate of the dam as encroachers.
During the meeting, the locals decided on four resolutions.
The meeting resolved that around 60 houses in the nearby area had been there since 1975, when construction of the dam had just begun. The plots for the houses were provided under the New Singtha Bazar Board Development Committee. The village has been known as the Kadangband Part I and is now presently under the Lairenkabi-Kadangband Gram Panchayat under Sekmai Assembly Constituency and since the village falls outside the boundary of the Dam, it cannot be evicted while taking up beautification or development works of the dam, the meeting resolved.
In case the village is affected by the developmental works of the dam, then the chairman and the secretary of the board will initiate strong actions against it, it said.
Lairenkabi-Kadangband Gram Panchayat Pradhan Nungleppam Bobi Singh, New Singtha Bazar Board Development Committee chairman L Mohendra and secretary ML Koireng also echoed the resolutions taken during the meeting.
They also said that if the government decides to go against the public resolutions than any untoward eventuality rising out of it should be borne by the government.
They also appealed to all including the MLA, Zilla Parishad, Pradhan, Members and public to join hands and work for the development of the dam.