Imphal: The 33-hour state-wide shutdown in Manipur since Friday has impacted normal life, especially in Meitei-dominated valley areas.
The public shutdown from 4 am on Friday till 1 pm on Saturday was imposed by a Joint Action Committee (JAC) formed in connection with the missing case of two teenagers from Imphal earlier this week.
The two teens, Avinash Maibam (16) and Anthony Ningthoujam (19) failed to return home in Imphal West after leaving for Sekmai to attend a function on Sunday morning.
In response to the bandh, supporters blocked the roads and highways prevented vehicular movement of all kinds, including the inter-state passenger services and inter-district services.
All business establishments and educational institutions remained closed owing to the total public shutdown. Meanwhile, the ever-busy Ima Keithel (mothers market) in Imphal wore a deserted look with all shops remained closed.
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However, no untoward incident was reported from the shutdown till the time of filing this report.
Two days after the two Meitei youths went missing, four members of the Kuki-Zo community, including a kin of an Indian Army, were abducted in the border between Kangpokpi and Imphal West. Police recovered two bodies in Imphal later that day, suspecting it to be part of the four missing persons. However, the recovered dead bodies of a man and woman are yet to be identified.
The ethnic clashes in Manipur between the Meitei and Kuki that erupted on May 3 have claimed over 180 lives and left several hundred injured.
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