Our Correspondent
Imphal, July 17 (EMN): Manipur has been completely cut off from the rest of the country after the Barak Bridge along Imphal and Jiribam sector of National Highway 37 which is considered as second life line of north eastern border state was damaged today. The Barak Bridge is located about 120 km West of Imphal in Tamenglong district, Manipur. The accident occurred when an iron panel of the British era bridge was broke down while chicken feeds loaded truck passed around 6 AM in the morning, reports said.
As a result, nearly 300 Imphal bound goods trucks which took the Barak Bridge route after the massive landslide wash away National Highway (NH 2) measuring around 200 feet of Imphal-Dimapur sector near Viswema village in Nagaland, which is about 120 km north of Imphal on Saturday.
Though some of the good trucks passed the area, most of the trucks carrying rice and petroleum products are reportedly stranded near Makru area along the NH 37 while necessary bridge repairing works are going on. The only route which connects the state with the rest of the country is lesser known Jessami route which comes from Kohima in Nagaland to Imphal via the hill tracks of Ukhrul district.
State Works Minister Thongam Biswajit has appealed to the people to bear for few days before the bridge is fully repaired and movement is restored. Meanwhile like Assam, clear skies since Saturday ensured that water recession from several inundated areas except the low lying areas on Monday in Manipur. However it is estimated that nearly two lakh people across the state are still suffering from floods.
Ayekpam Dilip (63) a flood affected resident of Lamboikhongnangkhong in Imphal West district expressed the need to provide necessary help from the government side as the flood water recedes from the homestead. “Otherwise we cannot reinter our homesteads, unless sanitise the areas,” he added.
In Manipur, altogether 19 people were killed in the landslides-floods, nearly 85000 hectares of agriculture land, 16,968 hectares of fish farms, 19095 houses, 421 government infrastructures including 128 schools, 43 bridges and 35 market sheds were destroyed as per the State Relief and Disaster Management Department reports. In view of the development, state agriculture department had assured that the short duration (100 days) rice variety seeds (RCM-10 and RCM-12) will be distributed to the needy flood affected farmers in the state.
