GUWAHATI: Mizoram home secretary Vanlalngaihsaka has sent a wireless telephony (WT) message to his Assam counterpart to facilitate movement of stranded vehicles into Mizoram and has assured safety of drivers, passengers and vehicles within the state.
Cachar district authorities said there is no economic blockade on NH 306 as claimed by Mizoram. In fact, hundreds of truckers, who have parked their vehicles in Cachar district, are refusing to move forward into Mizoram for fear of being attacked. Many of them said when six policemen could be gunned down in broad daylight by police of another state, there was no guarantee to their lives and vehicles.
Since the flare-up on the Assam-Mizoram border on July 26 in which six Assam Police personnel were gunned down and several others were injured by Mizoram Police, there has been no movement on NH 306, which is the lifeline of the hill state. The next day after the incident, locals of Cachar district spontaneously blocked the national highway as a mark of protest and prevented movement of traffic to Mizoram. But this blockade ended after 24 hours.
But no one travelled on the highway to Mizoram as the situation on the border remained tense. On July 29, the Assam government issued advisories to the people of the state against travelling to the neighbouring state and asked those working in Mizoram to “exercise utmost caution.” Assam home and political commissioner and secretary MS Manivannan, in the travel advisory, stated that certain Mizo civil society, students and youth organisations are issuing provocative statements against Assam and its people.
