Dimapur, October 29 (MExN): The Dimapur-based Civil Society Organisations (CSO), spearheaded by the Naga Council Dimapur (NCD), today upped the ante for lifting the contentious Nagaland Liquor Total Prohibition (NLTP) Act in Dimapur district.
In a second move on the issue within a fortnight, the NCD and several civil society organisations (CSOs) from East Dimapur came together for a consultative meeting on Wednesday, with common consensus veering towards the demand for the repeal of the NLTP Act.
The East Dimapur side was represented by the East Dimapur Village Council Chairmen Forum (EDVCCF), East Dimapur GBs Association (EDGBA), East Dimapur Naga Youth Organisation (EDNYO), Tribal Council Purana Bazaar (TCPB), Naharbari Community Citizens Forum (NCCF), and the East Dimapur Business Association (EDBA).
A similar meeting of CSOs on October 14 under the banner of the Naga Council Dimapur (NCD) had revived calls for repealing the NLTP Act in Dimapur district.
Meanwhile, addressing the media, NCD President GK Rengma termed the October 29 meeting a “success” and expressed optimism over the issue after hearing deliberations from the East Dimapur CSOs.
Dimapur Urban Council Chairmen Federation (DUCCF) President and convener of the Committee for Lifting the NLTP Act 1989 in Dimapur, Zasivikho Zakiesato, also noted that the meeting resolved that the NLTP should be lifted. “The next step is to continue further discussions with other stakeholders of Dimapur district, including village councils,” he added.
He announced that 14 organisations from Dimapur and East Dimapur have given their support to the repeal of the NLTP Act.
These include six organisations from East Dimapur attending the October 29 meeting—EDBA, EDGBA, EDNYO, EDVCCF, NCCF, and TCPB—as well as the eight attendees of the October 14 meeting: DUCCF, Naga Women Hoho Dimapur, Dimapur Naga Students’ Union, Gaon Bura Union Dimapur Sadar, Dimapur District Gaon Bura Association, Dimapur Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Business Association of Nagas, Dimapur District Citizens Forum, and Eastern Naga Women Organisation Dimapur.
