Detention and release of non-local labourers : Police Department's casual attitude irks JCILPS
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, July 23 2016 :
The Joint Committee on Inner Line Permit System (JCILPS) has expressed strong displeasure over way the State police have been handing over non-local labourers to their respective contractors/employers after they (non-local labourers) were pulled up by vigilant citizens for venturing into the State without necessary documents.
Volunteer of the Advanced
Women Society, Awang Sek-
mai and the Awang Sekmai
Protection Committee pull-
ed up and handed over 87
non-local labourers to police
today too.
According to reports, the
non-local labourers did not
possess any documents nec-
essary for working in the
State.
The two civil organisations
pulled up 123 and 147 such
non-local labourers on July 20
and July 22 respectively.
Speaking to media persons
at Awang Sekmai Nong-
thonband today where local
people were verifying non-
local people coming to the
State along Imphal-Dimapur
highway, JCILPS assistant
convenor (organisation)
Hayatur Rahaman Yumkhai-
bam said that not less than
100 non-local people who did not possess necessary docu-
ments were detected everyday
since July 20 and they were
handed over to police.
However, the State police
handed over all the non-local
labourers to their contractors/
employers in the most casual
manner.
Of all the non-local la-
bourers pulled up so far, 80
per cent did not possess iden-
tification documents while the
remaining 20 per cent were in
possession of dubious docu-
ments.
None of them posse-
ssed documents necessary for
working in the State, Hayatur
said.
As neither the ILPS nor a
similar mechanism is en-
forced in the State, any citizen
of the country can come to
Manipur.
JCILPS was hoping that
police would verify all the
non-local people who did not
possess valid identification
documents and send them
back to their respective
States.
Even if they possessed
identification documents, they
must also possess necessary
workers'/labourers' licences,
Hayatur asserted.
Altogether 47 non-local
labourers who did not pos-
sess necessary documents
were pulled up by JCILPS
volunteers from North AOC
on July 17 and they were send back to their home States after due consultation
with relevant authorities.
It remains a big question as to why the State Police De-
partment is unable to make necessary arrangements to send
back all the defaulting non-local labourers to their native States,
Hayatur said.
As for the 87 non-local labourers pulled up today, most of
them were engaged by Shyam Powers India Pvt Ltd which is
construction power sub-stations at Thoubal and Simplex
Company while some others came on their own.
They came in inter-State buses belonging to Network Trav-
els, Temple Bell, Kim Travels, Ching-Tam Travels and JK
Tourists.
All these travel agencies and companies/firms who brought
and hired the non-local labourers should come to the office of
JCILPS within two days for an amicable settlement of the
issue, Hayatur added.