Traffic on Mnp section of NH-37 hit due to indefinite bandh

January 29, 2022 87 Views No Comment

January 29, 2022
Correspondent

Normal vehicular movement along Imphal-Jiribam section of NH-37 was disturbed on Friday due to an indefinite bandh imposed to protest non-disbursement of compensation for the land affected by the highway expansion. The indefinite bandh commenced from last midnight.
Village Authority Chairmen’s Council (VACC) of 12 villages called for the indefinite bandh call alleging that compensation for the land and houses affected by the highway expansion were not disbursed despite their repeated plea to the concerned authorities.

VACC leaders said that they were compelled to impose bandh on the highway, the second lifeline of Manipur after no positive response from the state government despite an ultimatum serving a January 25 deadline.
They said the bandh will continue until the state government considers their demand positively,
Hundreds of vehicles, including Imphal-bound loaded trucks and inter-state buses plying from Assam were stranded midway, official reports said.

The police also stopped all kinds of vehicles originating from Imphal midway fearing untoward incidents or likely attacks by bandh supporters along the route. The bandh continued peacefully with no untoward incident related to the strike on day one.

Meanwhile, normal life was severely hit in the rural areas across six valley districts of the state for the second consecutive day, owing to the 38-hour total shutdown call given by the elected functionaries of panchayati raj institutions (PRI). In the rural areas covered by the PRIs, almost all shops and business establishments, oil pumps, ATM booths etc. remained closed today, for the second consecutive day even as vehicles, particularly commercial vehicles, stayed off the roads.

Shutdown supporters, mostly MGNREGA card job card holders came out on the roads in large numbers and blocked the roads by burning debris, stretching logs and bamboo.

The strike ended today at 6 pm peacefully.
The PRIs alleged that despite funds sanctioned for MGNREGS and other developmental activities through the PRIs, the state government withheld the funds.

President Abdul Latif of the parishad said that the Centre had already released a fund amounting to Rs 330 crore in August last year for implementation of the works under MGNREGA but the state government failed to release the same further to the PRIs after releasing Rs 160 crore.
He said that owing to withholding funds for a long time, the PRI functionaries were unable to clear wages for the job card holders even as the beneficiaries were pressing them to pay out the due wages.

He further threatened of other intense forms of agitations if the state government failed to release the fund despite the shutdown call. Earlier, the PRI functionaries had also boycotted this year’s Republic Day celebration for the same reason.

Source: http://www.nagalandpost.com/traffic-on-mnp-section-of-nh-37-hit-due-to-indefinite-bandh/