Overview
- An economic blockade imposed since May 13 after the killing of three Thadou pastors has effectively sealed National Highway‑2, the road that carries about 70% of Kangpokpi’s daily supplies.
- The blockade has produced acute shortages and steep price rises, with a 50 kg bag of rice rising to about ₹4,000 from roughly ₹1,400–₹1,700, LPG cylinders scarce and selling on the black market for around ₹5,000, and petrol retailing at about ₹250–₹300 per litre.
- Security forces report they have dismantled roughly 30 village bunkers, installed 114 checkpoints, and provided escorted convoys that have ensured movement of 392 vehicles along NH‑37 but have not cleared NH‑2.
- Local administration and services are strained: Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen has been unable to travel to Imphal and attends meetings virtually, hospitals rely on escorted transfers for serious patients, and MLAs helped bring limited rice and LPG consignments into the district.
- The blockade is part of a broader pattern of escalating ethnic violence in Manipur since 2023 that has already caused hundreds of deaths and raises the prospect of prolonged hardship for the poorest residents if supply lines are not fully restored.