Correspondent
IMPHAL, AUG 21: Passenger bus service between Imphal and Guwahati via Dimapur resumed on Friday after remaining suspended for more than three years following the outbreak of ethnic violence in Manipur in May 2023.
The resumption marked a significant step in the Manipur government’s efforts to restore peace and normalcy and revive an important public transport link between Manipur, Nagaland and Assam.
Two buses and five passenger vehicles carrying 125 passengers departed from the Inter-State Bus Terminus at Khuman Lampak, Imphal, on Friday morning. The vehicles safely crossed Kangpokpi district and reached Mao Gate without any untoward incident before proceeding towards Senapati and onward to Guwahati through Nagaland, chief minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh said.
“As part of my government’s continued efforts to restore peace and normalcy in the state, bus service of Imphal-Dimapur-Guwahati has resumed today after more than three years,” Singh said in a social media post, highlighting the safe passage of the passenger vehicles.
The Imphal-Dimapur-Guwahati public transport service had remained suspended since violence broke out between the Meitei and Kuki communities on May 3, 2023.
The chief minister’s secretariat described the successful resumption of the interstate passenger service as a significant development amid continuing efforts to restore normalcy in the violence-hit state.
The service is expected to ease travel for passengers and restore a vital interstate transport connection after more than three years of disruption caused by the ethnic conflict.