Stop quarrying at Sekmai river from June 1 : Locals
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, May 12 2013:
All tender processes related to quarrying in Sekmai river bed have been ceased for some years.
A decision to this effect was adopted at a public meeting held today at Koujeng Leima ground.
Among others, the meeting was attended by members of Sekmai Protection Committee, Advanced Women Society and Awang Sekmai Youth Club.
It further resolved to ban entry of vehicles as well as labourers in Sekmai river with effect from June 1 .
If any vehicle or labourer is found quarrying in Sekmai river, the driver as well the labourer would be fined Rs 5000 .
Ahead of the meeting, tenders for quarrying were opened and announced.
However, a large group of people marched in and interrupted the process.
But no untoward incident took place between the two sides due to timely intervention by police.
Talking about the matter, a leader of the Advanced Women Society said that the Sekmai Development Committee made an arrangement at Sekmai community hall to open sealed tenders.
But the process of opening the tender bids was far from satisfactory.
Apart from conducting the process behind closed door, local people were kept out of the process.
Sekmai Development Committee was formed by 21 local bodies of the villages located in and around Awang Sekmai.
A few members of the committee led by its president and vice-president made the arrangement for opening sealed tenders even as majority of the constituent local bodies have already objected the tender process, said the woman.
In addition to the fishy tender process, large scale quarrying in Sekmai river bed has aggravated the problem of water pollution.
The impact of large scale quarrying has reached even household wells.
Apart from quarrying manually, some people have started quarrying stones using excavators.
The process of holding tender for quarrying in Sekmai river bed was prohibited in order to save the river, she added.