Northeast Platform

IMPHAL, Jun 3: Pharmaceuticals shop owners near the Thoubal district hospital today urged the Manipur chief minister to protect them from atrocities meted out on them by PREPAK militants for not shelling out their extortion demand of Rs. 2 lakhs.In the meantime, labourers of the brick fields in Imphal west also commenced an indefinite sit-in protest today against closure of the brick fields due to heavy monetary demands on the proprietors.Another sit-in protest was also staged in front of the Lamlong High School at Khurai Lamlong by students of the school against serving of monetary demands on the teachers of the school.Pharmacies in Thoubal district, mention may be made, have been closed since yesterday owing to the threats given to them for not meeting the monetary demands served on a letterhead of the PREPAK dated May 17, 2008 signed by its finance co-ordinator for party funds.Today, the proprietors of the pharmacies called on the chief minister at his bungalow and submitted a repr...

IMPHAL, Jun 3: A shopkeeper was severely wounded by splinters and six shops, including two on the opposite side, were badly damaged when a powerful blast at Chingmeirong Mamang Leikai, on the side of the NH-39, shattered the silent night at around 10 pm tonight.The bomb was so powerful that a pit of around five feet diameter with a depth of around three feet appeared at the site where the bomb was planted. It also destroyed four shops located adjacent to the site totally and also caused to the shutters of two shops located on the opposite side.However, only one shopkeeper who was inside his shop named Vim Doshnet, 30, son of Prem Bahadur sustained injuries by the splinters from the bomb. Police could not immediately confirm what kind of bomb was exploded.The severely wounded Vim was immediately evacuated to the RIMS hospital by the personnel of 39 Assam Rifles posted at Chingmeirong, not far from the blast site.He received injuries all over his body.According to the Assam Rifles who r...

IMPHAL, June 3: A major difference of opinion has occurred among the public of Heirok village on the issue of establishing SPOs in the village with two separate groups taking up opposing and confrontationist stands on the matter.A group of people belonging to the families of those who have already joined the recruitment process for SPOs recently conducted by the state government at Heirok, with support from representatives and volunteers of local clubs and women`s organisations of Heirok villages convened a public meeting this evening.The meeting was totally against the resolutions taken during the public meeting held under the aegis of JAC Heirok at the residence of local MLA M Oken on June 1 at Heirok village, during which it was resolved to oppose the establishment of SPOs at the village.The public meeting this evening at the Ibudhou Ikop Ningkthou Umang Lai in Heirok Part-II was chaired by Elangbam Thethe, a village elder. After deliberations by the villagers including representat...

IMPHAL, Jun 1: Tamnganba Meetei, propaganda, communication and technical officer, military council of the KCP has condemned the joint statement of the KYKL and UNLF which stated that the KCP(MC) was a masked proxy of the Indian security forces. The statement lacks clarity while blaming the KCP(MC), it said.The joint statement of the KYKL and UNLF signed by the publicity and research secretary, Langamba of KYKL and deputy secretary, organization, N Ibochou of UNLF respectively which stated that the bomb blast incident at RIMS complex was an act of terrorism was indeed worthy of condemnation, it said.It is too much to say that the KCP(MC) was not a revolutionary group but part of IOF, the KCP official said.It was unfortunate that the two respected organizations were dispatching statements through media which confused the people. It happens to give a great chance to the anti-revolutionaries, it said.Like the UNLF which was broken into two factions, UNLF (Meghen) and UNLF (Oken) which is ...

IMPHAL, May 30: The KYKL and the UNLF, in a joint communique to the press condemned the bomb explosion at the RIMS within the office complex of the institute`s director, Dr. Fimate, calling it an act of terrorism calculated to tarnish the image of the revolutionary movement in the state.The joint statement said, intimidating the sick and ailing is an unforgivable act of inhumanity, adding that under humanitarian norms hospitals are spared even during the most bitter wars.The two underground organisations said the pattern of these assaults by the KCP(MC) should have made it clear to everybody by now that the KCP(MC) is the masked proxy of the Indian forces with an agenda to alienate the revolutionary campaign waged by revolutionary organisations from the people.It however said this campaign by the "Indian Occupational Forces" would boomerang on it sooner than later.Explaining further, the two outlawed groups said the KCP(MC) is now holed up within the IG (AR) South headquarte...

IMPHAL, Jun 1: Villagers who requested militants not to take a percentage from their wages for works done under the National Rural Employment Generation Scheme, NREGS in Churachandpur district were beaten black and blue by suspected cadres of the Kuki National Army, KNF(MC) leaving five of them with severe injuries.The Komrem Students` Union has, in the meantime, condemned the assault on the villagers by militants and also urged the state government to compensate the victims within 48 hours.Altogether 26 villagers of the Kangathei village were summoned by the cadres of the outfit yesterday morning for holding talks in connection with the deducting of percentage from their wages at Tuibeyang village where the cadres of the outfit were taking shelter.Late in the evening, they were left after being beaten badly as they allegedly refused to give a percentage from their wages, according to reports.Four of the severely injured villagers were referred to the RIMS hospital in Imphal early tod...

Kohima, June 1 : As long as the Naga civil society and Church remain passive, the infighting among the various Naga factions will continue, said the newly elected Naga Hoho President Keviletuo Kiewhuo who asserted that the apex civil body shall work to be impartial. If all the Naga civil society remains neutral on issues, there’ll be nobody to point out or say who is right and who is wrong and the different Naga factions will continue to fight and killing among the Naga brothers will increase, the newly elected Hoho president told The Morung Express today.There are two phases of urgency confronting the Nagas today when it comes to the Naga political issue: ‘internal’ and ‘external’. Internal issue relates to the ongoing division and killing among the Nagas on factional line and tribal line whereas the external issue relates to the ongoing peace process with the Government of India, said the new Hoho president. He emphasized that the Naga Hoho should today give priority on the internal...