TURA, Jan 11 - Williamnagar is set to get back to normalcy tomorrow after shopowners were assured by the police of better security. Local MLA, Deborah Marak, visited the spot of the blast to take stock of the situation.
The market association had shut down shops on Sunday and today demanding better security in the aftermath of the January 9 blast. A series of meetings was held by the market association with the district administration, local MLA and the police today.
Meanwhile, a protest rally will be held tomorrow by local Ngos and shop owners condemning the blast and seeking punishment to the guilty.
The association later met local MLA Deborah Marak with their grievances as well as demands for reopening the market. She promised to take up the grievances with Home Minister Roshan Warjri.
The market association later decided to reopen shops tomorrow after assurances were provided by the police team led by additional SP Anand Mishra.
The market has had faced numerous scares in recent times with the last one coming just about a month ago when a grenade was lobbed but failed to explode. The incident had happened just about 20 metres from where the latest incident took place.
Intelligence sources had warned of an incident just a day prior to the blast and there had been police checking all across the town. Traders felt the incident could have been avoided if there was prior information provided to them.
�They should have informed us about the threat so that we could also have been on the lookout for any stray bags. Unless they trust us with information how will this be controlled?�, asked a trader. �We had asked for installation of CCTVs in the market. The State Government has not taken this seriously�, he said.
The problem for the traders does not end there. �The police are unable to provide security for us. But when we pay money demanded by militants, they catch us saying we are supporting militants. Who wants to give his hard-earned money but when police cannot provide security, do we keep risking our lives?�, he added.
