By M.Devanand Sharma
Imphal (Manipur), Sep 15: The ongoing crisis in the state has now seen an official death toll of 175, 4786 houses burnt down 32 persons still missing.
Manipur IGP (Operations) IK Muivah addressing a confidence building press conference while reassuring the people of Manipur that the police, central forces and the civil administration are trying round the clock to bring normalcy back said that “security barricades from Phougakchao Ikhai in Bishnupur district to Kangvai in Churachandpur district have been removed while security has been provided on national highways.”
This latest action of the state force would go down well with the public who had wanted the security barricades removed and the internally displaced allowed to return to their place of origins.
Briefing the media on the violence that rocked the state since May 3, the IPS officers stated that as many as 175 people were killed, 1,108 others injured while 32 are missing in the ongoing ethnic strife.
Giving an official figure of the arsenal, IGP Muivah said that as many as 5,172 arson cases were reported, out of 4,786 houses were set on fire, 386 religious structures were destroyed or vandalised, including 254 churches ,132 temples.
The police have taken up confidence building measures, set up additional checkposts and launched search operations with the assistance of CAPF and Army, he informed.
The senior police officer also said that all barricades set up in between Phougak-chao Ikhai and Kangvai along Tiddim Road of Bishnupur district have been removed.
To a query, IGP IK Muivah said that a joint inspection is carried out every 15 days at the designated camps of SoO militant groups.
Action will be taken up against the cadres found missing during the inspection, he added.
The police have received specific reports about armed people moving freely in the valley districts and the same is unfortunate, he added.
IGP Zone-II Nishit Kumar Ujjwal conveyed that different teams of CAPF had visited Koutruk, Haoraothel, Kharam Thadoi, Bethel, Kadangbandm, Singda areas where instances of firing took place recently and interacted with the people of both sides.
He said that vehicular movements have begun on both National Highway 37 and National Highway-2.
Regarding weapons looted from the police armory during the violence, Muivah informed that 1,359 firearms and 15,050 ammunition were recovered so far.
IGP (administration) K Jayanta added that of the 175 people who died, nine are still unidentified.
He said, 79 of the bodies have been claimed while 96 remain unclaimed.
At RIMS and JNIMS (hospitals in Imphal), 28 and 26 bodies have been kept respectively, while 42 are at Churachandpur hospital.”
Jayanta said that 9,332 cases have been registered and 325 people were arrested.
