GUWAHATI: Several organisations, including the Goalpara units of the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) and All Assam Minorities Students’ Union (AAMSU), staged a blockade on NH-217 at Dudhnoi-Damra Road on Monday morning, demanding hassle-free movement of traders and transporters on the Dudhnoi-Baghmara route.
Threatening to intensify their agitation if the route is not reopened within 72 hours, the protesters also demanded that the lockdown-affected petty traders from Goalpara, who have now started going to the weekly haats in Garo Hills, be allowed to carry out their activities without any “harassment.”
“Members of at least 17 organisations, including Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti, various transport and trade associations, participated in the blockade which was, however, curtailed to one hour following the Dudhnoi circle officer’s assurance to take up the matter. Petty traders and transporters from Assam are harassed and not allowed smooth passage on the Dudhnoi-Baghmara route,” AAMSU, Goalpara unit president, Animul Hoque Choudhury alleged.
Speaking to The Shillong Times on Monday, Hoque, however, said that the movement of traders and transporters was under way on the Paikan-Tura route.
It may be mentioned that last month, as many as 40 organisations had, under the aegis of AASU (Goalpara unit), threatened to stage an indefinite economic blockade on all routes to Garo Hills against travel and trade restrictions imposed by Meghalaya in the wake of the pandemic.
However, the agitation was temporarily withdrawn on October 28, following revision of entry and exit protocols by Meghalaya, exempting entrants, who produce COVlD-negative reports at the entry point, from testing, irrespective of their state of origin.
Besides, the North Garo Hills district administration, too, had issued an order regarding easing of curbs to facilitate business between traders of Goalpara and the district.
“We have submitted a memorandum to the Goalpara SP and the latter has taken up the matter with his North Garo Hills counterpart on the issue of safe passage to traders and transporters and to ensure that vendors who have to go the weekly haats for livelihood in Meghalaya do not face any form of harassment,” Choudhury said.
He, however, said that the organisations would be compelled to intensify the agitation if the situation remained the same after three days.