Boundary work comes to a halt
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, April 24 2012:
The Committee on Re-organisation of Administration and Police District Boundary which was constituted in the wake of prolonged and intense agitation spearheaded by the Sadar Hills Districthood Demand Committee (SHDDC) last year has suspended all its works.
An official source informed that the Committee headed by the Chief Secretary as chairman suspended all its works since November last year.
Notably, SHDDC demanding upgradation of Sadar Hills to a full fledged district imposed an economic blockade on Imphal-Dimapur highway and Imphal-Jiribam highway starting from the midnight of July 31 midnight till August 7 last year.
The same blockade was extended till October 31 after the blockade turned violent resulting in some deaths and casualties of many blockade supporters.
The blockade supporters also burnt several vehicles including oil tankers.
At the height of the agitation, the State Cabinet held a meeting on August 22 and decided to form the Committee on Re-organisation of Administration and Police District Boundary with the Chief Secretary as chairman.
The Cabinet meeting further decided that the committee should submit a report after three months.
On the assurance of the Government that Sadar Hills would be declared a full fledged district on the basis of the committee's report, the SHDDC inked a truce with the Government in the night of October 31 and called off the blockade with immediate effect.
On account of the prolonged stand off between the Government and the SHDDC, people of both the hills and valley suffered untold miseries.
Price of petrol jumped to Rs 200 per litre at Imphal and many development projects taken up by the Government were stalled for months.
The committee headed by the Chief Secretary worked in a hectic pace for some period.
A series of public hearings were held on the proposed district boundary re-organisation.
But the whole process was suspended abruptly and the filed containing written statement given by different organisations are lying untouched in an almirah of Revenue Department, Secretariat, added the source.