Governor Gurbachan Jagat arrives at the Assembly in Imphal on Monday. Picture by UB Photos

Imphal, March 19: The Manipur government is giving “highest priority” to timely completion of Jiribam-Imphal railway line and Imphal-Jiribam highway to avoid scarcity of commodities during economic blockades, governor Gurbachan Jagat told the Assembly today.

This, Jagat said, was in the backdrop of last year’s extended economic blockade on the state’s supply lines creating simmering tensions and scarcity of essential commodities.

The combined blockade called by the Sadar Hills District Demand Committee seeking creation of Sadar Hills district out of Senapati and the United Naga Council against inclusion of Naga villages in the proposed district disrupted supply for 120 days.

“My government will continue to ensure unobstructed upgrade of NH53 (Imphal-Jiribam route) by 2013 and extend unstinted support to the NF Railways for completion of the Jiribam-Imphal railway line by 2016,” the governor said in his address to the House on the opening day of the four-day budget session today.

Jagat said the Union home ministry deployed one battalion of CRPF for providing dedicated security cover for the railway line project.

The governor said after keeping 1,500 cadres of two umbrella militant organisations — the Kuki National Organisation and the United People’s Front — in 11 designated camps following signing of suspension of operation agreement with the government in 2009, the situation improved in the state.

He said the agreement had been extended for one year on August 16 last year.

“All security forces have acknowledged improvement in the law and order situation in the five hill districts following singing of the SoO agreement,” he said.

He said during 2011-12, the state government received over Rs 2,663 crore from the home ministry for police modernisation. In addition to this, the state government provided Rs 20 crore for construction of police outposts, police stations, all-woman police stations at district headquarters of Ukhrul and Senapati.

Manipur jail department and Indira Gandhi National Open University had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for providing appropriate education facilities to the inmates of the state’s two jails.

Jagat said the government had received 148 projects under non-lapsable central pool of resources with a total cost of Rs 1,206 crore for power, water supply, roads and bridges, health, education among others.

Of these, 54 projects had been completed with a total cost of Rs 353 crore.

On the fiscal situation, Jagat said the government could maintain revenue surplus and had not gone into overdraft since 2005-06.

Stating that implementation of the sixth Pay Commission’s recommendations and under-assessment of the state’s non-plan requirements by the 12th Finance Commission created fiscal constraints, he said the government would continue to urge the Centre to provide additional resources to make up for the shortfall in the 13th Finance Commission award.