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Imphal, Feb. 16: Supply of essential commodities resumed today along the Imphal-Dimapur highway after the Senapati District Students’ Association lifted its 15-day economic blockade.
The development took place after a government team, led by Manipur tribal development minister D.D. Thaisii, held negotiations with a delegation of the student body at the district headquarters this afternoon.
The team, comprising Thaissi, Independent MLA from the district K. Raina and inspector-general of police (law and order-III) V. Zathang, held talks with the student delegation in the office of the Naga People’s Organisation located at the district headquarters for more than two hours.
The student body imposed the economic blockade on February 1 midnight in protest against the failure of the Ibobi Singh government to repair the road.
After a visit by works minister K. Ranjit Singh, the repair work started two days into the blockade.
Despite that, the student body refused to call off the agitation, demanding that maintenance work be handed over to the Border Roads Organisation.
Tension mounted following arrest of two blockade supporters by district police last night, prompting the Ibobi Singh government to send a team to Senapati.
The police said blockade supporters had set a truck loaded with fish ablaze last evening near Karong, about 6km north of Senapati police station.
After the arson, the police arrested A. Pukani, 34, and Yarmi Ringri, 35, from the spot. However, they were released later in view of the lifting of the blockade.
Taking advantage of the lack of adequate number of security escorts, some blockade supporters stopped the truck and set it on fire. It was part of a 300-supply vehicle convoy being escorted from Mao to Imphal by a team of Manipur Rifles personnel.
The arrest of the two alleged arsonists triggered tension in the district headquarters and other parts of the district, particularly along the Senapati sector of the highway, with the student body calling a lightning bandh in the district this morning.
Bandh supporters damaged some vehicles this morning.
During the talks later today, the student body agreed to lift the strike as well as the economic blockade with immediate effect. On its part the government team promised the student body that the ongoing repair work would be completed as soon as possible.