Irate public shut all routes to JNIMS; meeting with Chief Minister ends in stalemate
Source: Hueiyen News Service / Okendro Khundongbam
Imphal, October 26 2015:
Hundreds of people led by Joint Action Committee (JAC) against the closing of Pong Lambi (road) blocked all routes leading to Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS) campus Imphal causing inconvenience to patients visiting the hospital on Monday.
The JAC had on October 21 adopted a resolution to shut all the activities of JNIMS including OPD from Monday onwards if the institute's authority failed to open the Pong Lambi.
The road which runs across JNIMS campus was closed down by authority since the conversion of the erstwhile JN Hospital into a medical institute.
On Monday, the residents of localities in the vicinity of the institute blocked the OPD, casualty ward and all entries including the main gate to the campus since 9 am.
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When a group of the protesting crowd headed towards the official residential quarters of the JNIMS Director Prof Deben Laishram, the security guards posted there opened blank fire to disperse the irate mob.
After this, there was a brief meeting between the members of JAC and JNIMS Director.
During this period, the main gate and other entry points except the OPD were opened for a while.
However, since the director could not take a concrete decision over the issue, the member rushed out of the JNIMS Director's office and re-imposed the blockade.
As the situation became tense in the JNIMS area, a delegation comprising five members of the JAC held a meeting with Chief Minister O Ibobi at his residential office.
The Government side was represented by the JNIMS Director and two more officials.
However, the meeting once again ended in a stalemate as Chief Minister Ibobi kept on insisting that the Medical Council of India (MCI) had to be consulted before opening the road.
Ibobi requested the JAC members to take back its decision of blocking all routes leading to the institute in the interests of the patients, students and the general public.
However, the JAC members contended that the road was one of the traditional and historical link-routes between various villages and localities in the area even before the establishment of the institute.
They also argued that opening the road will provide easy access to the medical institute from all sides in case of medical emergencies.
Since the meeting could not bring an amicable solution, the JAC announced that it will impose a public curfew in the JNIMS area from November 1.JAC stated that the blockade will be continued till October 30.Meanwhile, the State Government has tightened security in and around JNIMS area by deploying adequate forces.