Shillong, Sept. 9 : The Ri Bhoi Youth Federation has called off its night blockade along National Highway 40 in Ri Bhoi district of Meghalaya.
Ri Bhoi superintendent of police R. Dkhar saidtoday that the federation had called off the blockade after an assurance from the deputy commissioner of the district, Akash Deep, that its demands would be taken up by the government.
The decision to call off the strike also comes in the wake of chief minister D.D. Lapang deciding to launch three ambulances manned by the Emergency Management and Research Institute (EMRI) in Nongpoh on Thursday.
Lapang had an emergency meeting with his cabinet colleagues last evening following which a decision was taken to provide the ambulance service to the district.
The youth body is demanding appointment of doctors and medical staff at the primary health centres (PHCs) and community health centres (CHCs) in the district.
Absence of doctors and staff at the centres has caused undue hardship to patients.
The federation had also asked the government to put an end to the frequent transfer of officials from the district, a move that has affected development.
The organisation had also asked the state government to release ambulances for the district, as patients were still dependent on private ambulance service.
The Ri Bhoi SP said the first day of the two-day blockade had affected normal flow of traffic but it passed off peacefully.
“We had escorted several vehicles which had to reach Guwahati, Silchar, Agartala and Mizoram”, he added.
However, there were traffic snarls at several places through the morning as several vehicles were stranded after the first day’s blockade ended at 5am. The snarls started clearing after several hours with police making an extra effort to get the additional vehicles moving.
The police also arrested five persons last night from Nongpoh for pelting stones at trucks passing through NH-40. However, they were released today.
The protesters also tried to torch tyres on the highway with an intention to disrupt traffic flow. However, the police foiled their attempts.
With the blockade called off, normal traffic was restored by the evening.
