KSO Twilang block president Enock Kipgen on Tuesday urged the Manipur government and authorities concerned has been urged to compensate for all the paddy fields inundated by the mudslides and provide financial assistance to the affected farmers.
Meanwhile, Imphal-Tamenglong road near Tujang Vaichong sub divisional headquarters, which was completely cut off by a mudslide, was almost cleared on Tuesday and vehicles started plying in the afternoon. The locals with the help of a JCB provided by the 4th Bihar Regiment Tamei Battalion and another JCB of Makui cleared the debris on Monday.
Enock Kipgen said that a team led by SDO T Vaichong, James Pani along with DFO Kangpokpi Chingpilhing Kipgen, executive engineer PWD Loken Singh, Kangpokpi Police and a team of NDRF and SDRF visited the site today.
He said that the visiting team reached the spot Lamlenkon at around 1:30 pm this afternoon and inspected the whole area. As insisted by the DFO Kangpokpi, the team also visited the source of the mudslide.
The team found that a huge portion of a hillock had collapsed, and after visiting the source of the mudslide, they concluded that a permanent solution can never happen.
Enock said that the course of the stream must be restored by clearing the debris and stressed on the need to clear the perennial water canal sources of the paddy fields. He also pointed out that almost all the paddy fields submerged by the mudslide belong to farmers of T Vaichong.
He urged the state government and authorities concerned to compensate all the paddy fields inundated by the mudslides beyond repair and provide financial assistance to the affected farmers.
Meanwhile, the Kuki Students' Organization general headquarters and Kuki Reformation Forum separately condemned the alleged 'irresponsible statement' of chief minister N Biren Singh over the T Vaichong mudslide.
Sharply reacting to CM’s statement in his Facebook post, KSO remarked that the chief minister instead of showing empathy on the hardships faced by the people of the area chose to gloat over their pains of the villagers by attributing it to poppy plantation.
It stated that it would have been sensible if the chief minister did a little soul searching before coming out with such outrageous comments given the fact that there is no poppy cultivation in T Vaichong village.
It also recalled that this is not the first time the present chief minister had made malicious remarks against a community but sadly it has become a sad state of affairs. The organisation also demanded the chief minister for an apology for his statement.
In one of his Facebook posts last year, the chief minister called a particular community as ‘refugees’, it stated.
The particular comment had deeply hurt the sentiments of many but the chief minister instead of apologizing, passed on the buck to some make-believe hackers who are still at large till today, it added. It continued that the promptness that was seen in arresting and incarcerating netizens whose comments were not in sync with his governments’ thinking was missing in this particular situation.
Meanwhile, the Kuki Reformation Forum stated that the chief minister's statement on the T Vaichong mudslide is yet another intimation of the terrible statesmanship of N Biren Singh himself.
It stated that his statement was irresponsible and despiteful, and therefore unsolicited of the chief minister.
As contrary to CM's statement, the region is densely forested and environmentally conscious and conscientious, it stated and added that statement was hurtful to the sentiments of the people and only shows his bigotry against the tribal communities in general and the people of the region in particular.
Moreover, the landslide happened for the third time in the region, and it is therefore disquieting why N Biren does not come forward as the people's CM and provide relief for the affected people, it stated.
It further stated that it will be proper for the chief minister to tender a public apology to the people of Kangpokpi district in general and to the people of T Vaichong in particular for his remarks, failing otherwise will only heighten the suspicion and antagonism against his government, it added.
