Imphal: Normal life was affected in the Imphal valley districts due to the 18-hour bandh called by a militant organisation in Manipur, officials said. Officials said markets, shops and banks remained closed and public transport vehicles were off the roads in five districts of the valley due to the bandh called by the banned militant organisation National Revolutionary Front of Manipur (NRFM).
He said that some private vehicles were seen on the roads. Officials said that essential services were kept out of the purview of the shutdown. An official told PTI-Bhasha that the shutdown has not affected the hill districts.
The NRFM called for a bandh to protest the signing of the merger agreement between the then Manipur ruler Maharaja Bodhchandra and the Government of India on this day in 1949. After the signing of the agreement, the princely state of Manipur officially became part of the Union of India on October 15, 1949.