Andro issues threat
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, November 15 2014 : People of Andro and surrounding villages would boycott the Manipur Sangai Festival 2014 in case Imphal-Yairipok road and some key inter-village which lead to important tourist sites like Kaina, Santhei Natural Park and Panem Garden are not repaired ahead of the festival.

A team of media persons today inspected some important but dilapidated IVRs of Keirao A/C and Andro A/C .

Interacting with the visiting media persons, people of those localities said that they would boycott Sangai festival and block passage of vehicles up to the popular tourist and picnic sites in case the dilapidated roads are not repaired ahead of the Sangai festival.

Poiroukhongjin Pioneer Youth Club president L Dojendra said both the old and new roads which connect Poiroukhongjin with Kaina are badly worn out.

Apart from being a site of pilgrimage, many tourists would be visiting Kaina during the Sangai festival, Dojendra said while appealing to the Government to repair the two roads ahead of the festival.

If the said roads are not repaired and black-topped properly, people of Poiroukhongjin would stay away from Sangai festival and no tourists would be allowed to take these roads, he added.

Apunba Nupi Khunai Lamjing Meira Lup president A Ibetombi and Bright Youth Club, Angtha president L Sanahanba decried that the roads connecting Angtha and Kaina and Ngariyan and Yairipok Keithelmanbi Lamkhai are quite pathetic.

These roads have become risky for school going children.

They too maintained that people of their localities would boycott Sangai festival if the dilapidated roads are not repaired.

Office bearers of the Youth Development Association, Huikap Makha Leikai said that the existing roads are not fit for the ever increasing number of tourists who come to Andro museum, Santhei Natural Park, Panem garden, Gwarok Mahadeva and Ingourok Mahadeva.

Accidents occur frequently on these roads because of their narrowness.

If the roads leading to these popular tourist sites are not repaired, people of Andro may resolve to boycott the Manipur Sangai Festival, they said.

The media team also observed that Imphal-Yairipok road which is the lifeline of 22 villages of Keirao A/C is quite dilapidated.

Moreover all the IVRs of the road have worn out badly.

Social worker MI Khan lamented that the Government has been approached repeatedly to repair Imphal-Yairipok road and IVRs of Keirao but to no avail so far.

Annoyed by the dilapidated condition, people came out to block Imphal-Yairipok road.

At this, the MLA of Andro A/C requested the aggrieved people not to block the road.

He also offered to repair the road but the offer went in vain as the MLA of Keirao A/C objected, MI Khan said.

MI Khan too echoed that people of Andro A/C and Keirao A/C may block the IVRs leading to popular tourist sites apart from boycotting Sangai festival if Imphal-Yairipok road and the IVRs are not repaired ahead of the festival.

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