A victim being taken to hospital in Imphal West on Friday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Imphal, Nov. 17: The heavily-guarded Imphal city will now resemble a fort with the state police department deciding to deploy two more companies of India Reserve Battalion in the wake of yesterday’s blast at Paona Bazar.

“Two companies of India Reserve Battalion will be deployed in the city in addition to the armed police personnel guarding it. The deployment will take place over the next few days,” director-general of police Yumnam Joykumar Singh said today.

Five customers, including one woman, were wounded in a bomb attack by suspected militants at an electronic goods store at Paona Bazar yesterday. One of the injured, identified as Chongtham Hemchandra Singh (32), a junior engineer in one of the district council’s cells, succumbed to his injuries at 4.30am today.

This is the second bomb attack in the city since November 3. Militants exploded one crude bomb, similar to the one exploded yesterday at a shoe store at Paona Bazar on November 3, injuring two persons.

The police chief, accompanied by senior police officials, today toured the city to examine the areas where the additional security personnel would be deployed. Armed police personnel are already guarding the city’s main entry points.

In addition to this, crack police commandos have also been patrolling the city on motorcycles.

As part of the beefed up security measures, the state government has barred entry of all three-wheelers, including rickshaws and cars, inside the city from today.

“The ban is only an experimental measure to enable security personnel to prevent entry of militants and criminals and also arrest them immediately in case of any threat,” Joykumar Singh said. The ban will continue for an indefinite period.

All shops in Paona Bazaar and on the nearby Governor’s Road remained closed for the day in protest against yesterday’s bomb attack. The police chief toured the city to gauge the situation.

Shops and all business establishments at Singjamei Bazaar in Imphal West also remained closed today as a pressure group formed by residents of Singjamei, the locality of the deceased, had called a day’s bandh.

A delegation of the pressure group today submitted a memorandum to the chief minister in-charge Th. Devendra Singh, demanding punishment for the guilty.

Already facing flak for the deteriorating law and order situation, the Okram Ibobi Singh government today sought to defuse the uproar by assuring the wife of the deceased, Nalini Devi, a government job as well as ex gratia.