CCpur/Tml/Kpi, May 17 : Churachandpur JAC’s 48 hours total shutdown of tribal areas affected life in Churachandpur town and different parts of the tribal areas on the first day.
At Churachandpur, shops and other establishments remained closed and very few vehicles, other than those exempted, plied the roads occasionally.
The shutdown as instructed by the KNO, however was not effective at the district headquarters of Churachandpur, Tuibuong and its adjoining areas. Most of the shops remained open and passenger vehicles from Imphal plied till Tuibuong market.
The total shutdown which came into force in all tribal areas of the State from midnight of May 16 against the decision of the All Political Parties meeting to send a team to Delhi to pressurize the Centre to enact the three Bills passed on August 31 last year has been backed by United Naga Council (UNC) and Zeliangrong Youth Front (ZYF). At the district hospital where the 9 tribal ‘martyrs’ are kept unburied for the past 8 months, womenfolk in large number gathered to offer condolence and prayers.
No untoward incident has been reported.
Tamenglong : 9 vehicles engaged in the railway construction, one truck carrying betel leaves and two other loaded trucks were damaged by bandh supporters at Longmai.
Educational institutions, offices and other establishments remained closed for the day. Many vehicles are presently stranded at Barak, Nungba, Khongsang, Irang, Awangkhul and Langkhong near police, CRPF and AR outposts as bandh supporters blocked sections of the road along the highway.
National Railway Construction works and BRO works were also halted.
Chandel : Normal live was paralysed due to the 48 hrs shutdown. Vehicular movement along Imphal-Moreh section of National Highway 102 and Chandel district headquarters road came to a grinding halt as some protesters blocked the Imphal- Moreh road at Lamkang Khunou village and the district headquarters road at Liwachangning village from early morning today.
At the district headquarters, all shops and other establishments down shutters. Besides closing down educational institutions and banks, most Government offices in the district headquarters recorded low attendance due to the shutdown.
There is no report of any untoward incident.
Kangpokpi : Various Thadou civil bodies including Thadou Students’ Association (TSA), Thadou Youth Association (TYA) and Thadou Women Association (TWA) enforced the 48 hrs total shutdown imposed by JAC against the ‘anti-tribal’ Bills along Imphal-Dimapur road along National Highway-2 today. Volunteers of Thadou bodies mostly women were seen engaged in road blockade at Gamgiphai and Motbung village while business establishments were totally closed in the areas and Government institution witnessed low attendance due to the bandh.
The bandh volunteers however relaxed medical services including medical emergencies and check-ups, water supply, media houses, postal service, telecom, electricity, airport pick and drop, on-going exams, marriage ceremonies and pre-planned conferences as exempted by the JAC from the purview of the bandh.
However, shops and other business establishments start opening at around 11 am at Kangpokpi and its adjoining areas while local traffic began to resume normally. With the stiff enforcement of the total shutdown particularly in all Naga inhabited areas including Senapati no vehicles were seen plying along the highway. One woman leader of the Thadou bodies said that they enforced the bandh along the National Highway 2 as per the instruction of its apex body, the Thadou Inpi. She continued that the Thadou bodies will continue to enforce the bandh and informed the KNF Rising Day goers to travel along with a clear label indicating the purpose. No untoward incident has been reported till the time of filing this report.
