Sadar Hill talks fail to break impasse in Manipur

Imphal |August 4 : Talks between the state government of Manipur and representatives of the agitating Sardar Hills District Demand Committee (SHDDC) today failed to bring any solution to the ongoing impasse. However, there is a development in the talk as the Sardar Hills District Demand Committee (SHDDC) will convene a public meeting on Friday at Kangpokpi regarding the conditions put up by the state government in today's meeting before the SHDDC leaders.
Disclosing to Newmai News Network, a source from the SHDDC said that at around 2:30 pm today, a three-member team of SHDDC met the state government representative which was led by chief minister O.Ibobi Singh. During the meeting which stretched to nearly three hours, the state government laid certain conditions before the SHDDC. The source said these conditions put up by the state government will be discussed minutely in a public meeting on Friday at Kangpokpi.
Meanwhile, SHDDC general secretary Tonghen Kipgen informed NNN over phone that the agitation in Sardar Hills area will continue. It is worth noting that the ongoing economic blockade began on NH-39 and NH-53 from midnight July 31, demanding for the declaration of Sadar Hill sub-division into a full fledged district after public meetings were convened at various places in the sub-division under the aegis of Sadar Hills Districthood Demand Committee (SHDDC) last week. From economic blockade, the SHDDC started it indefinite bandh since Wednesday after three persons were killed on Tuesday during the blockade violence.
"Following the abject apathy of the state government to our demand, we are forced into the decision to call a total economic blockade along National Highways 39 and 53 beginning midnight of July 31 till August 7, which may be extended if the government does not respond positively to the demand for a full fledged Sadar Hills district within the one-week time frame", president of SHDDC Ngamkhohao Haokip had stated few days ago. The blockade will not give any concession to transportation and movement of essential commodities via the two lifelines of the state, he had added.
Thangkam Lupheng, vice president SHDDC, had observed that the people of Sadar Hills have been persistently waylaid by the state government over the past decades, and said that this is perhaps the last attempt as far as the demand for a separate Sadar Hill district is concerned. “If a reasonable and rightful demand for a full fledged Sadar Hill district is not agreed to by the state government, we will be forced to scale up our demand,” he had said without spelling out what exactly he meant by scaling up the demand although it is assumed that it could well be a demand for a separate state.
Haokip had noted that in order to give protection to the hill people under the Constitution of India, Manipur (Hill Areas) Autonomous District Council Act, 1971 was enacted, prior to Manipur gaining statehood, as the government of the day was apprehensive that the cause of the hill people might not be addressed by the establishment. Despite the act having been implemented in letter and spirit in all the hill districts of Manipur, the cause of Sadar Hills autonomous district council has been constantly and relentlessly ignored by successive government in the state, he said.
Earlier the British administration, and later Manipur Constitution Act, 1947 strongly advocated separate administration for the hill areas of Manipur because of the widely held notion that there is nothing common between the plain and the hill people. The Northeast (Re-organization) Act, 1971 and other acts of the Constitution also provide special provision for administration under the 6th scheduled in most Northeast states of India, the president said.
He went on to say that the Manipur (Hill Areas) Autonomous District Council Act, 1971 effectively empowers the state government to redraw district boundaries. And accordingly, given the exigency and the politics of the time, successive state government has instituted a committee to study the boundary of Sadar Hills ADC. Several reports have already been submitted and adjustments have been made, but chief ministers and governors have successively refused to uphold their constitutional duty despite assurances made to SHDDC, he said.
 
Four Govt offices, three vehicles torched by strikers

Imphal, August 4 (NNN):
Four government offices have been burnt, three private vehicles razed and two cars nastily damaged at different places across the contiguous Sadar Hills Autonomous District Council in Manipur by suspected general strike supporters Thursday on the second day of the indefinite general strike imposed by Sadar Hill Districthood Demand Committee (SHDDC) even as tension mounts for the state government to break the gridlock that has completely crippled the lifelines of the state.
Reports came in early this morning that suspected volunteers of the striking committee set the offices of Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) located in Kangpokpi, 45 kms north of Imphal on National Highway 39, in the wee hours today. Documents and records inside Sub Divisional Office (SDO) and Block Development Office (BDO) located at Saitu Gamnom, 30 kms north of Imphal on National Highway 39, have also been completely destroyed by fire set by suspected volunteers of SHDDC. The office buildings were however redeemed from the razing fire by security forces stationed inside the compound, said the report.
While a Maruti Swift car was set on fire yesterday at 10 pm at Motbung, a Maruti Van (MN 06L/1288) and an unidentified Bajaj Pulsar were torched beyond redemption by irate strike supporters at 1:15 pm at Gamgiphai today. Both the incident sites are on National Highway 39. According to a late report, two Maruti cars have also been badly damaged by strike supporters at Henbung early evening today.
A team of Imphal West police commando who indiscriminately open-fired several rounds of rubber bullets and mob bombs yesterday at Bijang and Longjang villages allegedly in retaliation to the general strike have caused severe injuries to at least seven women folks who have now been admitted to KCC hospital in Imphal for further treatment, said Haokai Sithlhou, chairman of the sub committee formed to imposed the general strike which tentatively began on July 31 midnight as a 7-day economic blockade on National Highways 39 and 53 but has been escalated to a general strike since yesterday because of the alleged suppression of the protest movement by state security forces.
“We have taken the pledge to face any eventuality in order to realize our demand for the creation of Sadar Hills ADC into a full fledged district of Manipur,” stated the chairman of the sub committee and has appealed to the state government to desist from using force to suppress the people’s movement.  In the meanwhile, some 500 travelers, including around 100 women, have remained stranded at Senapati district headquarters even as tension escalates along National Highway 39.