Huge arms recoveries help in restoring peace in Manipur

Imphal: Since the imposition of President’s rule in Manipur on February 13, over 2,000 arms, mostly sophisticated, and over 20,000 rounds of various types of ammunition have been surrendered or recovered, facilitating the restoration of peace and normalcy in the strife-torn state.

The Centre is set to extend President's rule in Manipur for another six months from August 13, and a notice for bringing a statutory resolution on it has been given to the Rajya Sabha, while the Lok Sabha last week passed the resolution approving the imposition under Article 356 of the Constitution.

Between June 14 and July 28, over 870 arms and 12,820 different types of ammunition were recovered in joint operations by the Central and state forces from the Imphal Valley region and mountainous areas. Till March 6, around 1,000 looted and illegally held weapons, including many sophisticated arms, and a huge cache of ammunition, have been returned to the security forces by various organisations and individuals since Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla appealed for the first time on February 20.

Various reports and political parties claimed that during the ethnic riots, which broke out in Manipur on May 3, 2023, over 6,000 different types of sophisticated arms and lakhs of various types of ammunition were looted from the police stations and police outposts by the mobs, attackers and militants.

The initiative to recover the looted and illegally held arms began on May 31, 2023, when former Chief Minister N. Biren Singh made an appeal to all concerned to surrender the firearms looted from security forces and police armouries.

Officials said that prior to Singh’s resignation as Chief Minister on February 9, a total of 3,422 firearms had been voluntarily surrendered to the authorities and the police stations in different districts. Besides the bulk recovery of arms and ammunition, almost every day the security forces, comprising the Army, Assam Rifles, CRPF, BSF, ITBP and Manipur Police, during their joint operations recover the weapons and ammunition from both Imphal Valley and hill districts.

Manipur Director General of Police Rajiv Singh had said that arms and ammunition kept by a section of people and militants must be returned to the authorities, and dialogue between the warring communities would facilitate the restoration of peace and normalcy in the state. “Reduction of weaponisation of society” would greatly help to normalise the situation and restore peace.

"Manipur Police and other Central forces are working round the clock to recover the arms and ammunition that were looted from the police and other security forces after the ethnic violence started in the state in May 2023,” said the senior IPS officer, who was recently empanelled for the Director General (DG) of Central forces.

In another significant aspect, with the improvement in the situation, the Manipur government has started the resettlement of violence-hit displaced people. The state government has established over 300 relief camps in Imphal Valley and hilly regions to provide shelter to over 57,000 men, women and children, who were displaced after the ethnic violence broke out in the state over two years ago.  (IANS)

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