Tuesday, July 08, 2008

Educational institutes run normally on first day of 48-hr general strike

The Imphal Free Press

IMPHAL, Jul 7: The 48-hour state-wide general strike which commenced from midnight on Sunday affected the state partially today.

The general strike which is due to end by midnight of Tuesday (July 8) did not affect schools, colleges and other educational institutions, as the strike callers kept them outside the purview of the strike.

No untoward incidents were reported on the first day of the strike today.

Students attended schools as usual and school vehicles plied as usual as all the educational institutions and other related offices remained open for the day.

Apparently responding to the recent call from various students bodies, the educational institutes were exempted from the strike.

Except in and around the Haobam Marak area, two wheelers and light vehicles plied on the streets as normal but due to the non-arrival of the passenger service vehicles form other districts the traffic volume in Imphal city was considerably low.

Parking places of the passenger buses wore a deserted look as all kinds of passenger buses, including the inter-state and inter-district ones, remained off the roads today. However, a few taxi and auto-rickshaws were seen on the streets in Imphal city.

Most of the shops opened but shut down early afternoon.

Official reports said that normal life in other district headquarters of the state was not affected by the bandh even though no passenger buses and other commercial vehicles from Imphal arrived there.

In the morning today, strike supporters took to the streets along the two major roads in Imphal west district, the Tiddim road (Imphal-Churachandpur section of NH-150 at Kwakeithel area) and the Mayai Lambi road.

They blocked the Kwakethel-Karong road by piling logs and burning tyres. However, police dispersed them by firing tears gas and mob ammunitions in a bid to resume normal traffic.

Womenfolk also took to the streets at Kwakeithel area and blocked the road. They spread broken glasses on the road to disturb the traffic but police dispersed them from the area.

The general strike was called denouncing the murder of a youth named Langpoklakpam Bimolchandra by a combined force of Imphal west police commandos and 21 Maratha Regiment at Changangei near the Imphal airport on July 4 morning.

A local joint action committee, JAC, against the killing of the youth is alleging that he was killed in a fake encounter after being picked up from near the locality and are demanding government dismissal of the commando personnel involved in the killing.

They are also demanding repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act from the state and an end to any acts of state sponsored terrorism.

Source: http://www.kanglaonline.com/index.php?template=headline&newsid=42645&typeid=1

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