Ibobi in Delhi to discuss blockade

Manipur CM to meet PM, Chidambaram

Imphal, Oct. 13 : Chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh rushed to New Delhi today to discuss the blockade impasse with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and home minister P. Chidambaram.

He, however, had appealed to the Sadar Hills District Demand Committee to call off the blockade that began on July 31 midnight.

The committee, however, refused to call off the longest blockade in the state, maintaining the district should be created first.

The demand committee yesterday sent a delegation to meet Ibobi Singh to renew its demand for the creation of Sadar Hills district out of Senapati district. It is determined to force the government to create the district before the Assembly election likely to be held in February next year.

“The chief minister appealed to the committee to call off the blockade first before finding an amicable solution across the table on the district creation issue. The committee, however, iterated its demand for creating the district first. There is no change in the blockade situation,” government spokesman and irrigation and floods control minister N. Biren Singh told this correspondent.

Ibobi Singh assured the delegation that he would discuss with the central leaders for a solution to the district creation impasse.

Biren Singh said Ibobi Singh left Imphal for Delhi today to meet Manmohan Singh and Chidambaram to discuss ways and means to resolve the issue.

The committee said it would continue with the blockade until the demand was fulfilled.

The Ibobi Singh government feels the demand for creation of Sadar Hills district was justified, but it could not take a final decision in view of opposition by the Naga organisations like the United Naga Council (UNC) to the inclusion of Naga villages in the proposed district.

The Sadar Hills already has offices of additional superintendent of police and additional deputy commissioner.

The UNC also imposed an economic blockade along Manipur’s supply routes of Imphal-Dimapur and Imphal Jiribam highways to express its opposition to the inclusion of land belonging to Nagas in the proposed district.

The present boundary of Sadar Hills with three Assembly constituencies has several Naga settlement areas. The committee is insisting that the existing boundary should not change.

Biren Singh said Ibobi Singh would also brief central leaders on steps taken by the government to ensure supply of essential commodities.

Supply comes through the Imphal-Jiribam highway in a convoy of trucks with security escorts. Though the commodities, barring fuel, are now available in the market in adequate quantity, prices remained high because of an increase in transportation charges.