“All forces deployed in their areas must also be alerted. There must be proper coordination among the forces in order to prevent any untoward incident. Joint combing operations must be conducted. ADGP, zonal IGPs, range DIGPs must critically monitor the law and order situation to prevent any untoward incident,” the message read.In a statement, the state government said it learnt about the attack on unarmed villagers, perpetrated “reportedly by Kuki militants using drone, bombs and many sophisticated weapons”.“Such an act of terrorising the unarmed villagers is viewed very seriously by the state government when it is putting all possible efforts towards bringing normalcy and peace in the state,” the statement said, adding the attack was being seen as an attempt to derail the efforts to establish peace.Further, the statement said the state government had taken prompt action to control the situation and punish those who were involved.The last such incident occurred weeks before the Lok Sabha elections. The latest incident comes a day after the Kuki-Zo tribals took out rallies in some hill districts demanding “separate administration” for the community.The ethnic violence, which first broke out on May 3 last year, left over 225 people dead and around 60,000 others displaced. A large majority of the displaced people are still lodged in relief camps.The authorities enforced prohibitory orders under section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita in the Imphal West district.The Manipur police said the alleged Kuki militants “deployed numerous RPGs using high-tech drones” in the “unprecedented attack in Koutruk”.“While drone bombs have commonly been used in general warfare, this recent deployment of drones to deploy explosives against security forces and civilians marks a significant escalation. The involvement of highly-trained professionals, possibly with technical expertise and support, cannot be ruled out,” Manipur police posted on X. The post further stated that the authorities are closely monitoring the situation and the police are prepared to respond to any contingency that may arise.
Source link
