From Tuesday morning all petrol pumps in Manipur have gone dry. Petrol was not available since late Monday night. However some oil pumps in and around Imphal sold a few litres of diesel on Tuesday morning.
Oil pump owners said that no oil tanker has arrived at Imphal as a result of the indefinite blockade against Nagaland by the students and activists at Golaghat district of Assam. This is in protest against the killing of 12 villagers, missing of 4 others and torchings of several hundreds of houses in the district by the Naga miscreant suspected to be militants.
Though the activists say that there is no blockade against Manipur, the drivers are not sticking out their necks. The highway which is the lifeline of Manipur passes through Golaghat and Nagaland state. Fear is that frenzied villagers may attack the drivers and oil tankers mistaking them as those of Nagaland.
Most of the consumer items have also vanished from the market.
Life saving drugs are in short supply. The Chief Ministers of Assam and Nagaland had left the ball in Centre’s court saying that it should intervene. In the meantime, the Manipur Chief Minister is keeping a deafening silence despite the fact that the people are at the receiving end.
Following the mob attack against the Assam Chief Minister and his entourage, no minister or high official is visiting the affected district. No minister and official from Nagaland have also visited the border areas.
