IMPHAL: An ongoing economic blockade called by a students’ body in Manipur has resulted in a severe logjam at two entry points bordering Nagaland National Highways 2 and 129A in the state.
On Friday, over 300 trucks laden with essential commodities remain stranded in various parts of the Senapati district with no word from the state government on any impending resolution.
The local press has reported that close to 200 trucks en route to Imphal are now stuck at Northern Manipur and the bordering areas, while another 100 remain stranded between Mao and Senapati, with an additional 60 vehicles held up along the highway extending to T/Khullen.
Called by the Senapati District Students Association (SDSA), the blockade began on the evening of October 5 after the government didn’t pay heed to the students’ bodies demand of revoking the mobile internet ban in the district.
Earlier on October 4, the students’ body had given the government a deadline of 24 hours threatening to hold protest if their demand isn’t met. The SDSA had argued that since the Senapati district hasn’t experienced any no law-and-order situation over months, the government should lift the ban in the district.
While the ban’s primary objective was to quell the recent student protests in the Imphal valley, it has affected regions like Senapati, where no disturbances have been reported.
Meanwhile earlier today, the mobile internet suspension was further extended by five days until October 11. The state had briefly restored internet access on September 26, only to suspend it again following student protests in the Imphal valley.
