Blockade scarred CoTU urges Governor
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Our Correspondent
KANGPOKPI, Jul 8: In a memorandum submitted to Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, the Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU) has alleged that the district has been subjected to an "unconstitutional blockade" for over a month, and sought his urgent intervention to restore supply of essential commodities.
The memorandum, submitted to the Governor at Kangpokpi while he was returning to Imphal from Senapati, sought his intervention to dismantle the blockade, crack down on armed insurgent groups, and overhaul policing in the district.
It painted a grim picture of prolonged shortages of food, medicines and other essential commodities, claiming that normal supply chains from both Imphal and Dimapur have remained disrupted due to blockades at multiple locations.
CoTU urged the Governor to ensure the uninterrupted movement of essential commodities, including food items and medical supplies, while also pressing for the devolution of existing police stations into full-fledged police stations to improve security coordination in vulnerable hill areas.
The committee stated that despite repeated meetings with the district administration and security agencies, the situation has remained unresolved with no visible action taken to restore supplies to Kangpokpi.
According to the memorandum, the supply routes from Imphal towards Kang-pokpi through Namdilong- Kanglatongbi and from Dimapur via Taphou Naga have remained obstructed for over a month, severely affecting the availability of essential commodities.
CoTU asserted that the crisis has affected not only the Kuki-Zo community but also the wider population of Kangpokpi district, home to nearly 1.95 lakh people, including Gorkha (Nepali), Poumei and Thangal communities.
CoTU urged the Governor to immediately restore normal supplies of food and medicines through National Highway-2 by removing what it described as blockade checkpoints at Namdilong-Kanglatongbi in the south, Chawangkining on the IT Road in the west, Taphou Naga near Senapati in the north and Yaingangpokpi in the east.
The memorandum further claimed that overlapping police jurisdictions between Kangpokpi and neighbouring districts have emerged as one of the principal causes of continuing security and operational challenges, hampering effective policing and coordination among security forces.
It called for rectification of all overlapping police jurisdictions involving Kangpokpi, Imphal East, Imphal West, Thoubal and Senapati districts and demanded full functional policing powers for the existing police stations at Kangchup and Leimakhong.
It demanded rectification of what it termed as police jurisdictional encroachment by Senapati Police over Taphou Naga, asserting that the area falls under Kangpokpi Police jurisdiction and within Kangpokpi revenue boundaries.
It also sought implementation of an earlier agreement between the then Director General of Police and civil organisations of Kangpokpi regarding the establishment of a police station at Phailengmol in Saikul subdivision.
The committee also urged the Governor to crack down on the NSCN-IM.
Copies of the memorandum were also forwarded to Chief Minister Y Khemchand, Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen and Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh.
KANGPOKPI, Jul 8: In a memorandum submitted to Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, the Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU) has alleged that the district has been subjected to an "unconstitutional blockade" for over a month, and sought his urgent intervention to restore supply of essential commodities.
The memorandum, submitted to the Governor at Kangpokpi while he was returning to Imphal from Senapati, sought his intervention to dismantle the blockade, crack down on armed insurgent groups, and overhaul policing in the district.
It painted a grim picture of prolonged shortages of food, medicines and other essential commodities, claiming that normal supply chains from both Imphal and Dimapur have remained disrupted due to blockades at multiple locations.
CoTU urged the Governor to ensure the uninterrupted movement of essential commodities, including food items and medical supplies, while also pressing for the devolution of existing police stations into full-fledged police stations to improve security coordination in vulnerable hill areas.
The committee stated that despite repeated meetings with the district administration and security agencies, the situation has remained unresolved with no visible action taken to restore supplies to Kangpokpi.
According to the memorandum, the supply routes from Imphal towards Kang-pokpi through Namdilong- Kanglatongbi and from Dimapur via Taphou Naga have remained obstructed for over a month, severely affecting the availability of essential commodities.
CoTU asserted that the crisis has affected not only the Kuki-Zo community but also the wider population of Kangpokpi district, home to nearly 1.95 lakh people, including Gorkha (Nepali), Poumei and Thangal communities.
CoTU urged the Governor to immediately restore normal supplies of food and medicines through National Highway-2 by removing what it described as blockade checkpoints at Namdilong-Kanglatongbi in the south, Chawangkining on the IT Road in the west, Taphou Naga near Senapati in the north and Yaingangpokpi in the east.
The memorandum further claimed that overlapping police jurisdictions between Kangpokpi and neighbouring districts have emerged as one of the principal causes of continuing security and operational challenges, hampering effective policing and coordination among security forces.
It called for rectification of all overlapping police jurisdictions involving Kangpokpi, Imphal East, Imphal West, Thoubal and Senapati districts and demanded full functional policing powers for the existing police stations at Kangchup and Leimakhong.
It demanded rectification of what it termed as police jurisdictional encroachment by Senapati Police over Taphou Naga, asserting that the area falls under Kangpokpi Police jurisdiction and within Kangpokpi revenue boundaries.
It also sought implementation of an earlier agreement between the then Director General of Police and civil organisations of Kangpokpi regarding the establishment of a police station at Phailengmol in Saikul subdivision.
The committee also urged the Governor to crack down on the NSCN-IM.
Copies of the memorandum were also forwarded to Chief Minister Y Khemchand, Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen and Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh.