IMPHAL, April 26: The inaugural plague of the Khongjom War Monument cum Tourist Complex has gone missing after it had fallen from its wood frame just a day after it was unveiled by the President of India Pranab Kumar Mukherjee on April 23 during the Khongjom War celebration.
Concerned by the development, a team of the Khongjom War Memorial Trust led by its president and former minister H Hemanta today inspected the site.
Speaking to media persons, Hemanta said the trust take the incident with all seriousness and will soon file an FIR with the concerned police station and at the same time will make sure that the President of India hears of the development.
He said not only is the inaugural stone of the recently inaugurated complex missing, but the inaugural plaque of the Martyr Memorial Khongjom War Monument inaugurated by the then President VV Giri on October 21, 1972 has also gone missing. This is a serious issue, and the trust will do everything in its capacity to find the truth, he said.
The Martyr Memorial Khongjom War Monument was replaced by the newly inaugurated Khongjom War Monument cum Tourist Complex.
Meanwhile, Hemanta further lamented that the erection of a statue of Mahadeva in the middle of the April 23 inaugurated three pillars on top of Khebaching is unfortunate and debatable.
He further demanded that the government should publish the underlying meaning or message of the erection of the statue in the Manipur Gazette for the public to understand.
He further lamented that the huge fund of Rs 28.93 crore sanctioned by the Centre was utilised without even inviting tenders and the development work was awarded to their own contractors to earn profits.
He also asserted that even though a sum of Rs 4 crore has been sanctioned for construction of a public hall and another Rs 3 crore for construction of a tourist lodge, there are no signs of any construction.
