Pishak Laishram goes to the main Imphal market at dawn to buy various sackfuls of vegetables from village farmers who bring them everyday. Later she sells the same to other women vendors at a premium. She earns about Rs 600 as profit daily.
Mohammad Ali sells bantams and ducks brought from Myanmar in the local markets in Imphal. His elder son fetches the live fowls which are comparatively cheap across the border. Imphal to Moreh, the border town is just 108 km. They together earn about Rs 25,000 as profit every month.
Shiva owns a fish shop in Imphal. He has been selling iced fish which are brought from Andhra Pradesh. With his comfortable earnings he can afford to send his two children to an expensive school in Delhi.
However all of them and thousands of other traders have been sitting idle since September 4 when the United Naga Council had imposed an indefinite economic blockade demanding, inter alia, withdrawal of additional forces and lifting of prohibitory orders from Ukhrul district.
Following the assassination of a member of autonomous district council member, Ngalazar Malue on July 12 by militants, government had beefed up security measures. Two Tangkhul youths were killed during a procession on August 30 there. Though the government has now lifted the prohibitory orders and promised to withdraw the additional forces in batches, the blockade continues.
But traders and businessmen in Manipur are used to blockades, general strikes and other disruptions since the two highways which are the lifelines of Manipur had been degenerated to playgrounds long time back.
Government says that the daily loss due to disruptions along highways is in terms of hundreds of crores of rupees. But knowledgeable circles put the figure much higher. Because the government has not docketed expensive electronic gadgets, costly foreign goods, drugs, sophisticated weapons which are smuggled to some NE states daily.
Myanmar unofficially buys medicines, construction materials, bicycles, prescription drugs used as ingredients to manufacture powerful and highly addictive drugs.
In such a situation, many sections of people suffer and face losses. However, roadside vendors who sell fuel at exorbitant prices under the nose of police, some dishonest oil pump employees, hoarders and blackmarketeers do earn huge profit during such blockades.
No wonder Manipur experiences blockades, strikes and other obstructions at least 200 days in a year. The longest blockade lasted 103 days in 2012. It would have continued had it not been for the fact that Manmohon Singh and Sonia Gandhi had visited Imphal well ahead of the Assembly elections.
