Security personnel conduct a search operation and area domination in the fringe and vulnerable areas of hill and valley districts in Manipur. File
| Photo Credit: ANI
Manipur security adviser Kuldiep Singh said on Friday (September 20, 2024) that 2,681 weapons had been recovered in the State so far, out of which only 1,200 weapons were looted from police armouries.
Mr. Singh said that though more than 6,000 police weapons were looted after ethnic violence erupted in the State on May 3, 2023, the number of recoveries showed that a large number of sophisticated weapons, that might have come from outside the country, were available with the public.
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“About 2,681 weapons have been recovered so far, out of these only 1,200 were looted from police armouries. Out of the remaining 1,400, around 800 are sophisticated weapons that have come from outside, may be outside the State or the country. We have to ask the society from where these sophisticated came here?” Mr. Singh told a press conference in Imphal.
He said more number of weapons were looted from the valley areas and more arrests had been made in the valley as it was easier to operate there due to availability of security forces and better communication. “Whereas in the hills, it is difficult to operate due to the terrain and they get alert and disperse when they see a raiding team as they are stationed at a height. One unused rocket (7.5 ft long) and three used rockets have been recovered so far. We have not been able to locate the place where the rockets etc are being manufactured in the hills,” Mr. Singh added.
Ethnic violence between the tribal Kuki-Zo, concentrated in the hill districts, and the Meitei people, who live in the valley areas, erupted in the State on May 3, 2023. As many as 237 people have been killed and more than 60,000 people have been displaced in the violence.
He said the security forces had taken a number of steps in the wake of reports that militants might carry out violence in peripheral villages.
After the September 6 “rocket attack” at Moirang, 26 weapons were recovered from hill areas in a huge operation, he said.
Drone bomb case
Mr. Singh said that the September 1 “drone bomb” case at Koutruk had been handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
“This case is one of its kind. Earlier nowhere a drone has been used for dropping bombs. We don’t have much technology in Manipur. Central agencies have better wherewithal at their disposal to identify and investigate. The militants from the hill side who have used it are to be identified and arrested. So, we are taking NIA’s help,” he said.
He said a total of 533 persons had been arrested till date.
About 60,000 security personnel were maintaining peace in the State “else both the communities would have been fighting like anything and keeping violence under control.”
He added that the government was aware about intelligence inputs regarding the entry of “900 Kuki militants” on September 28 and “unless it is proven wrong it is 100% correct.”
He said districts including Churachandpur, Tengnoupal, Ukhrul, Kamjong, and Pherzawl had been placed on high alert.
Mr. Singh added that while traditional combing operations focus on seizing arms and ammunition, there was now increased scrutiny for materials used to manufacture rockets, missiles, drone components, and batteries.
He said 468 bunkers had been destroyed till date since the start of the ethnic violence.
Published – September 21, 2024 12:50 am IST
