TODAY -
Jirighat prospers at the cost of Jiri
Source: The Sangai Express / Jacob Panmei
Jiribam, December 07:
The armed movement in Manipur has taken a heavy toll on Jiribam on the Manipur-Assam border and while Jiribam has suffered, the bordering town of Jirighat on the Assam side is prospering at the cost of the former.
Jiri market, which was once a flourishing trade centre, has lost out to Jirighat, thanks to large scale exodus of businessmen who preferred to do business on the other side after many militant groups started calling the shots at Jiribam.
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Exodus of business started in 1997 and continued upto 2001.In fact 1997 was the turning point, when militant groups started imposing their diktats on the trading community ranging from banning the sale and consumption of liquor.
Then followed the ban on sale of Hindi film CDs, zarda pan, Mithamana etc.
These banned substances have a ready market in Jirighat for the people of Jiribam.
Nothing can stop a man from going over to Jirighat, a mere 100 metres from Jiribam to enjoy a quick peg or two.
Likewise it is not much of a problem for an eager movie buff to walk across to Jirighat and buy the latest Hindi film CD.
These are but some examples of how money earned by the people of Jiribam are being spent at Jirighat in Cachar district of Assam.
Frequent donation drives by NGOs and student organisations is another factor for the businessmen to seek greener pastures across the State's border.
Bandhs and blockades, which are a dime a dozen in Manipur, are some sort of a lucky charm for the traders at Jirighat, as the people of Jiribam have to go there to buy their essential needs.
The situation is also exploited by the trading community at Jirighat who hike the prices of essential commodities, whenever there is any strike or bandh in Manipur.
However not everything is lost for Jiribam as Jiri market is getting more active these days, thanks to the semblance of normalcy with heavy deployment of troops.
Some organisations have also started appealing to the people of Jiribam to shop in their own market and initiatives are on to increase the number of market days at Jiri market.
As of now market days are Monday and Friday.
In fact if the present scenario continues, Jiri market will boom and it has all the potential of becoming a commercial hub of the State.
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