The first thing that hits you about Imphal, the capital of Manipur, are the never ending queues outside petrol pumps. The queues run into kilometres. But more than the length of the queue, it is the amount of time that a person in Imphal spends outside a petrol pump that shocks you. On an average, it takes almost 3 hours to fill a fuel tank, and that too, partially.
The situation has been like this for more than 100 days now. This is a direct result of the economic blockade by the United Naga Council, now more than a 100 days old. The blockade began on 1 November, when the UNC anticipated that CM Ibobi Singh was about to create new districts in Manipur.
Specifically, the creation of two districts directly affected the Nagas; Sadar out of Senapati district, and Jiribam out of Imphal East district. The UNC considers these areas as a part of the Naga ancestral land, and the creation of the new districts was seen as a deliberate interference by the state Government.
Chief Minister Ibobi Singh went ahead and created 7 new districts. This led to the hardening of stand by the UNC, and for more than 3 months now, they haven’t allowed the movement of trucks carrying goods and essential items into the Imphal Valley. Most fuel tankers reach the Imphal Valley under heavy protection of security forces.
The economic blockade has resulted in an acute shortage of essential items, specifically fuel. The petrol pumps are either shut or they are rationing the fuel distribution. A limit has been set on how much petrol a person can buy - Rs 1,000 for a car, and Rs 300 for a two-wheeler.
The locals mostly buy petrol from the black market, in fact, this is something which is not even done clandestinely. Women selling petrol in plastic bottles can be spotted on all major roads in Imphal, and the price - a whopping Rs 200 for a litre of petrol.
So in these assembly elections, who comes to power in Manipur will clearly depend on how the voters of the state are coping with this economic blockade. If they think the state Government has managed the situation well given the constraints and perceived lack of support from the Centre, then its advantage Chief Minister Ibobi Singh, else BJP can hope to pose a serious challenge to the three time Chief Minister of Manipur.
Cameraman: Tridip K Mandal
Multimedia Producer: Puneet Bhatia
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