All districts in Manipur should be covered under NREGS: Singh

New Delhi, May 29 (UNI) Manipur Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh today stressed the need for inclusion of all districts in the State to be covered under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) for creating employment among the rural youth.

Addressing the 53rd NDC meet on " Food and Agriculture" here, Mr Singh said the scheme was aimed at providing wage-employment and employment opportunities to the youth and agricultural workers .

It was initially approved only for Tamenlong district for 2006-07.

The implementation of the scheme, which started from 2006-07 gives a boost to agricultural labourers in enhancing their income and purchasing power. The progress of implementation of the scheme in the district is very good. For 2007-08, two more districts of Chandel and Churanchandpur were included.

He said Jiribam is the only MG rail terminal in Manipur to induct foodgrains and other essential commodities. It is therefore necessary to restore the placement of foodgrains wagons at Jiribam so that the stock of foodgrains can be inducted by rail in additional to road movement from Dimapur to Imphal which has been disrupted by various factors.

Mr Singh regretted that the construction of FCI godowns at Jiribam has been completed sometime ago but FCI has not yet started stocking of foodgrains till date. If the FCI starts stocking of foodgrains at Jiribam depot, foodgrains and essential commodities can be transported through NH-53 Jiribam-Imphal roads. It will curtail the problems faced by the State along Dimapur-Imphal roads, he added.

He said the transportation of foodgrains and other essential commodities to the State is mainly through the long terrain of NH-39 passing through the State of Nagaland. It is a well known fact that the law and order situation in the North Eastern States has been affected by the movement of various insurgent groups and further aggravated by frequent occurrence of land slides leading to total blockade of roads for days, ethnic bunds, strikes and illegal taxes collected at Dimapur abnormally casting shadow on the prices of essential commodities and other goods.

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