Nagaland: PAC calls for Dimapur bandh on October 7

Eastern Mirror Desk

Dimapur, Oct. 1: The Public Action Committee (PAC) of Naga Council Dimapur (NCD) on Tuesday called for an indefinite bandh starting from October 7, to protest what it said was the stoppage of transportation of goods and essential commodities into Dimapur for the fifth consecutive day.

This was informed by Vekhosayi Nyekha, the convenor of the PAC at a press conference at Tourist Lodge in Dimapur on Tuesday.

Nyekha informed media persons that an FIR has been filed by the NCD at East police station in Dimapur against three persons, namely Gori Shankar Joshi, Inder Sharma and Prakash Rai.

According to him, these three persons are owners of transport companies that have stopped other trucks from entering the commercial hub; making them the only ones allowed to bring their goods into the city.

Nyekha expressed serious concern over this non-entry of transporters and claimed that it is like a “syndicate system they are running,” adding that the prices of essential commodities have not come down due to this system. The PAC, on Tuesday had a collective meeting with all the tribal bodies of the NCD and as per their demand to establish a revision of the prices of commodities, the committee expressed disappointment at the district administration for not notifying the rightful authority.

“District administration has not taken any action as per the public regulation and this revision of market prices has not been done since 2012,” Nyekha said. He informed that the paramilitary forces, district administration, police, schools and colleges that have exams and emergency services like hospitals and fire department will be exempted from the bandh on October 7.

Nyekha also informed that the committee would be writing to the chief secretary of Nagaland and appeal to him to coordinate with his counterpart in Manipur in order to act against the illegal taxation on transporters and businesspersons, and ensure free passage of truckers into Nagaland.

Furthermore, the convenor said that the PAC would appeal to the state government to keep a time frame to establish a regulatory law for market prices of essential commodities so that the efforts of the police and organisations concerned will not go in vain.

Nyekha hoped that during the next assembly session, such a law would be passed.

The PAC had adopted a resolution earlier this month to ensure that toll tax collection, and booth of the DMC, should be manned by the DMC alone. He informed that this has been successful and outsourcing to other departments have been discontinued.

Maintaining that the issue of taxation or illegal collection has become a virus spreading all over the state, Nyekha appealed to all tribal organisations and bodies ‘to take action and if needed approach the PAC in the future.’