Manipur Chief Minister Y. Khemchand flagging off 477 new vehicles for Manipur Police on Monday marks a ground-level intervention aimed at bridging capacity gaps and shifting from crisis-driven operations to building preventive capacity. Retaliatory attacks and abductions of civilians by armed groups in the Naga and Kuki-Zo regions have set off urgent alarms on widening security gaps in Manipur, which is still trapped in a cycle of violent clashes between armed groups among Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups. Consistent reconciliatory efforts by civil society organisations from all communities in the troubled state are needed for a sustainable breakthrough. Manipur Police making a breakthrough in the prevailing security situation, with the support of central forces, hinges on securing the trust and cooperation of peace-loving people across all communities. The strengthened mobility of the state police force is expected to play a crucial role in keeping the highways open for an uninterrupted supply of essentials by preventing attempts by agitating groups to weaponise these lifelines to press for their various demands. Frequent blockades of the highways have deepened ethnic divides in the state as they choke the supply of essentials, triggering acute shortages of food and fuel, disrupting education, and affecting healthcare service delivery. Prolonged blockade creates an administrative vacuum, allowing armed groups and militants to regroup and expand their territorial control. Security forces intensifying search and area domination operations have led to the seizure of a large quantity of arms and ammunition across the state. Yet, these gains are still inadequate against the scale of the crisis gripping the state, as armed groups continue to target unarmed and innocent civilians and engage in repeated armed exchanges. Armed groups hiding behind human shields of innocent unnamed villagers have made the disarming task challenging for security forces deployed in the state, as they have to exercise maximum caution to prevent collateral harm. Nevertheless, the yearning for peace among ordinary people has intensified as the escalating security situation threatens to plunge the state into a vicious cycle of instability and regression. Manipur’s peace-building efforts must extend beyond merely responding to protests, blockades, and agitations. The Manipur government adopting the doctrine that peace and development go hand in hand is critical to consolidating the gains in disarming operations and sustained dialogue with all the communities affected by mindless violence. As an immediate solution to political demands raised by various groups is not in sight, the state prioritising confidence-building measures among the affected communities, preventing further escalation on the ground, and pushing all development projects and initiatives are essential for reviving hope for an end to violence and a better future. Construction of roads and bridges, aggressively pushing all connectivity projects, and equipping educational institutions with modern facilities like smart classrooms and world-class healthcare equipment can help create a positive mindset and wean people, especially young unemployed youth, away from the path of violent reaction to law-and-order situations and the lure of militant groups. Supporting farmers to boost their production by subsidising their farming expenditures and assuring remunerative prices through better marketing linkages and government procurement at minimum support price can help strengthen the rural economy and increase household savings. Optimal utilisation of funds available under food processing schemes of the central government will help generate employment avenues for youth of the state in the processing and marketing value chain. As the state’s resources have been overstretched in dealing with the emerging security situation, relief and rehabilitation of affected people, paying compensation to victims’ families, and the central government coming forward to support the state with increasing funding support for all centrally sponsored and central-sector schemes are essential to push the development agenda in a big way. Sustained dialogue with all agitating groups, both armed and civilian groups, belonging to all the communities is a must to keep them engaged in the peace initiatives. Because of recurring attacks and retaliatory strikes, trust deficits continue to deepen, and an immediate dialogue among the conflicting communities will continue to be elusive until the trust deficit persists. Pushing development activities in an expeditious manner can help restore confidence in daily governance and make the citizens realise how it impacts improving their lives and help them come out of a long exhaustive cycle of conflict which is not of their making. Security forces must intensify efforts to rescue every individual held captive by armed groups in retaliatory attacks in each other’s village so that people’s confidence in their capacity to deal with the situation and protect lives and properties is bolstered. Civil society organisations also must continue their efforts for the restoration of peace, for without their engagement, the suffering of the affected communities will only deepen, and reconciliation will remain elusive. Manipur can only overcome the fragility in the security situation by simultaneously pushing for development as it intensifies efforts to restore law and order.