Crackdown to transport convoys: A new security plan for Manipur

Some of these steps are already being taken. In fact, there were protests in many parts of the state’s valley after 26 members of Arambai Tenggol, a Meitei militia, were rounded up Friday along with some village volunteers. They were released later.

Sources said militants on both sides of the ethnic divide will be arrested, illegal checkposts of Kuki groups on roads in the hills are already being removed, and an amnesty scheme has been rolled out for those who have looted weapons from police armouries.

Specific actions have been planned in the hills, including better regulation of movement of goods and people in Moreh and speedy construction of the India-Myanmar border fence in Manipur. Sources said it could also mean greater deployment of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), other than the Assam Rifles, in Moreh.

But the big step the administration has planned is to ferry people and goods from the valley to the hills and vice versa.

Currently, the hill areas get their supplies through Mizoram because Meitei groups do not allow goods trucks headed to the hills to pass through the valley. People in the hills, especially the Kuki, also cannot come to the valley to board a flight out of the state. Similarly, those in the valley, especially the Meitei, have no option but to fly out because road journeys out of Imphal will mean passing through the Kuki-dominated hills.

“This has to change. At first, we will make sure goods reach the hills through Imphal and vice versa. We will then ferry people from hills to the valley and vice versa on helicopters. If this works, we will slowly start road journeys. This will be done by deploying convoy protection as is done in Kashmir. This way, a larger number of people will be able to travel,” an official of the Ministry of Home Affairs said.

Much of this, however, hinges on the hope that neither side initiates a fresh wave of violence. Sources said the expectation is that Kuki groups, which in the past have even used drones and rockets to attack, have even evinced interest in talks now that N Biren Singh is no longer Chief Minister.

Moving to crack down on militant groups on both sides of the divide and recover arms, Governor A K Bhalla issued a statement Thursday that if arms looted from armouries are returned within the next seven days, no prosecution will take place. Beyond the deadline, strict action will be taken against those in possession of looted or sophisticated weapons – more than 6,000 weapons are estimated to have been looted since the start of the ethnic violence.

While such appeals have been made in the past too with little success, the administration is hopeful it will be different this time.

“There is President’s rule now. Police and security forces will be able to work more freely. Earlier, whenever police would try to take action or apprehend someone, some local politician would show up or trouble would be created. There would be attempts to put pressure on the local police. We hope this will stop now and the fear of the force of law will compel at least the ideologically neutral fence sitters to surrender arms,” an official of the MHA said.

– With ENS in Imphal