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Imphal, Oct. 1: Indo-Myanmar border trade at Manipur’s border township of Moreh was affected today because of a 24-hour Imphal-Moreh road blockade by Kwatha village authority against the death of a villager and injury to two women in a series of bomb blasts triggered by the United National Liberation Front (UNLF).
Cadres of the UNLF triggered several improvised explosive devices near Kwatha, a village along the Indo-Myanmar border, to attack an Assam Rifles patrol party last Friday. Two Assam Rifles personnel were killed and four others were wounded in the blasts. A former secretary of Kwatha village authority, N. Sangaijao, was also killed while two village women were wounded in the blasts.
To protest the incident and inaction of the state government the village authority imposed a 24-hour Imphal-Moreh road blockade from 6am today. The villagers are demanding compensation for the dead and the injured.
Kwatha is a border village in Chandel district, 18km northeast of Moreh police station. Moreh acts as the gateway to Indo-Myanmar border trade.
The road blockade, however, did not have any impact on Moreh town and neighbouring Namphalong market of Myanmar. The border gate was opened today despite the blockade, but trading activities were not hectic.
“The road blockade did not affect Moreh market and border trade continued. However, trade volume came down today as no vehicles were coming from Imphal,” an official source in Moreh said over phone.
There was no vehicular traffic between Pallel of Thoubal district and Moreh today as all transport services were suspended. However, there was no report of any untoward incident.
Today’s blockade came after the villagers staged a sit-in at Kwatha a day after the blast to protest the incident.
The Assam Rifles guard the Moreh border and a police commando post was also set up recently to prevent cross-border movements of armed militants.
“After the Kwatha attack, the Assam Rifles and police commandos have stepped up vigil along the border. Patrolling has been intensified,” the official source said.
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