Shillong: Calm has returned to the Meghalaya capital exactly a week after it experienced unprecedented turbulence over an incident in the heart of the city.

An altercation and an assault on three persons at Sweepers' Colony, Them ïew Mawlong, on May 31 had spiralled into violent protests at nearby Motphran. Stone pelting by protesters and use of tear gas by security forces was the order of the day since last Thursday night until Monday, especially at Mawkhar and Motphran. The protesters also demanded shifting of the residents of Sweepers' Colony.

The incident came as a jolt to the three-month-old Conrad K. Sangma government, which has formed a high-level committee to look into relocation of residents of the colony. Conrad reached out to various stakeholders to restore normalcy.

Six days after imposition of curfew, first in "vulnerable" localities and then in the entire city, life has begun to normalise here.

The improvement in the law-and-order scenario prompted the East Khasi Hills district administration to further relax curfew in the vulnerable areas from 7am to 2pm on Thursday (from 7am till noon on Wednesday). In the rest of the city, the curfew relaxation hours remained from 5am to 6pm. The relaxation saw the market areas flooded with people and traffic snarls in several areas.

In the evening, the East Khasi Hills district magistrate Peter S. Dkhar announced that curfew would be relaxed on Friday for nine hours from 7am in areas under Lumdiengjri police station, including Jaiaw, Mawkhar, Umsohsun, Riatsamthiah, Wahingdoh, Mission, Mawprem, Lumdiengjri, Lamavilla, Qualapatty, Wahthapbru, Sunny Hill, Cantonment, Mawlong Hat and cantonment beat house areas (excluding localities beyond Umshyrpi bridge). It will be promulgated again from 4pm until further orders.

Night curfew in the city will be effective from 8pm (instead of 6pm) till 5am from Friday, until issuance of fresh orders, he added.

Mobile Internet and SMS services, suspended since last Friday, were yet to be restored till the filing of this report. The services were suspended to thwart spread of rumours and unverified news. The administration has not said when the services will be restored.

"We are reviewing the situation before taking a call on lifting the suspension," Dkhar said.

Though calm has returned to the city, law-enforcing agencies are not taking the unexpected violence lightly.

A police official said the situation would be assessed before taking any decision to totally lift the curfew.

Asked if troublemongers took advantage of the May 31 incident at Them ïew Mawlong, he said law would take its own course against such elements. "We need peace and we are putting in all efforts to bring the situation under control and ensure that law and order is maintained," he added.

Stating that maximum restraint was exercised while dealing with the stone-pelting mob, he said it was a tough situation for law-enforcers - civil and the police.

Superintendent of police (city) S.A. Rynjah said around 100 police personnel were injured, some of them seriously, in the stone-pelting by mob.

The exact data of injury among civilians is, however, not available. Many protesters got injured after being hit by stones thrown by protesters from behind, he said.

"While trying to help an injured youth, who was bleeding after being hit by a stone, I was also hit on the shoulder by an object thrown by protesters from behind," said Rynjah, who is yet to recover from the injury.

The SP said around 40 people, including stone-pelters, were detained, of whom 15 have not been released.

Additional reporting by Rining Lyngdoh