Guwahati: Even though Manipur is showing signs of a return to normalcy with the level of violence coming down, the strife-torn state continues to be volatile, with both the warring communities, in possession of sophisticated weapons, particularly long-range rifles fitted with binoculars and even rocket-propelled explosives.
This is hardly surprising as most fatalities during the nearly five-month-long violence are caused by sniper rifles.
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Another pertinent question being repeatedly asked is why have the Central security forces deployed in the state not been able to contain the gun battles that often take place in the foothills, where the hills meet the valley.
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According to Lieutenant General (retired), LN Singh, violence in the state during its initial stage was community-based mob violence. Singh, who once headed the Indian Army’s Intelligence Corps, revealed that the violence has degenerated as terrorists have taken over their guns have been targeting unarmed civilians which is “unacceptable”.
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“There is a distinction between terrorist, insurgent and militant. Why are the people, those in Jammu and Kashmir or al-Qaeda called terrorists, whereas people fighting in the northeast are called insurgents? The reason is that in insurgency there is respect for human lives. Normally, one does not kill for the heck of killing. There is respect for the right to live. There are some rules applied. But what is happening here is that, initially it started off as mob violence. Now, I feel that the terrorists have taken over with no regard for human lives.” Singh said.
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Even after over five months, the violence continues and most victims are unarmed civilians, even with such massive deployment of Central forces on the ground, numbering almost 60,000.
On being asked about the performance of the Central forces in containing the violence so far, the third Lieutenant General of the Indian Army from the northeastern part of India said, “The Central forces must reassess their strategy as the perpetrators of the violence have changed. The major challenge for the security forces is because they believe that these are community-based mobs who are not demanding sovereignty, they were probably more lenient as they thought they could negotiate and reason with them. However, the perpetrators have changed. So the security forces must rethink how to deal with the perpetrators.”
Singh further said that proper accommodation and other logistics of the Central forces deployed in the state are other challenges faced by them. For the last five months, they have been accommodated in temporary places, away from their families on short notice, bringing only their weapons, some unit equipment and their personal belongings.
He asserted that when a unit is required to stay for such a long time in an environment like Manipur, they would require certain logistics like permanent accommodation and other basic amenities required for such a long deployment.
“This infrastructural requirement has two aspects; one is the budget as money has to be spent and second is the time part of it. It cannot be raised overnight. These personnel have mostly moved on a notice of four to five hours, which means they would not have had ample time to get prepared. They would require more logistics than what they could bring. So, they are currently facing a lot of difficulties which is probably leading to frustration and desperate actions,” Singh added.
“Taking into account the woes of the security forces, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has assured the required budget required for the construction of temporary camps for the security forces. On the other hand, the state government has also decided to make available prefabricated camps in consultation with the security forces,” a top Manipur government official said.