in Manipur, conflict takes a new turn as militants pick up modern weapons
Documents seen by Manipur Police say the rocket was launched at 3.40 pm on September 6, travelled almost 5-6 km from the hills and landed near the house of the state’s first chief minister Mairembam Koireng Singh in Moirang.
At least 23.8 kg in weight, 5cm in thickness and nine feet in length -- these were the dimensions of a rocket fired by Kuki militants on September 6 last week that killed one person, injured five others, and has since become symbolic of the burgeoning security problem confronting the administration in a state roiled by 16 months of near-continuous conflict.
Documents seen by Manipur Police say the rocket was launched at 3.40 pm on September 6, travelled almost 5-6 km from the hills and landed near the house of the state’s first chief minister Mairembam Koireng Singh in Moirang, killing RK Rabei Singh(72), a Meitei man. Five relatives of the former chief minister, including a 13-year-old girl, were injured.
Since September 1, when violence flared up in the state, at least 10people have died. Clashes first began in Manipur on May 3 last year between the dominant Meities and the tribal Kukis, but has since spiralled to engulf the entire state, killing 225people. Communities have withdrawn behind their respective strongholds -- the Meiteis in the valley and the Kukis in the hills.
But after a brief interlude of nearly three months, violence returned to Manipur on September 1, when one woman was killed and 10 others were injured after militants opened fire and dropped grenades using drones, in the first bombing of its kind in the strife-torn state.
In this new turn to the 16-month-long conflict, officials say militants have turned to modern weaponry such as drones to drop bomb, built rockets that can travel up to 5-7 km, improvised existing weapons, and modernised the old ones. Officials add that they are shocked at the level of sophistication in the weaponry.
“These rockets we are recovering even have metallic fins attached at the back to ensure that the balance is maintained. In one such recovered rocket, fins measuring 14.5 inches were welded,” said a senior military officer, requesting anonymity
He explained that the rockets have two parts — one explosive warhead and another containing the propellant.A metallic tube of GI pipes or iron cast is used as the outer shell. Inside the shell, they pack a crude bomb using urea or ammonium nitrate. They then add metal chips or cycle ball bearings.
Senior home department officials said that sometime in August, the Manipur Police sent alerts to all security forces about militants testing rockets. “Nobody took those reports seriously. Now it seems that the reports were authentic,” a senior Manipur police officer said.
In the last 10 days, rockets were fired in at least two places — Molphai Tampa and Tronglaobi - in Manipur’s Bishnupur district. One person died and over six were injured.
The WHICH officer also said that the rocket launchers used were technologically advanced versions of country made pumpi guns -- a crude bomb inside a pipe that is aimed in the air at a 45-degree angle. Police said they jointly recovered nearly 400-500 pumpi guns in the past one year.
“Militants in Northeast have been using it since the World War II days. But not everyone graduates to rocket launchers that travel 7 km or drones that can drop explosives,” the police officer added.
DRONES
Another cause for concern are drones allegedly being used by militants. Police say several drones were used to drop bombs in the September 1 attack which took place near the border between Imphal West and Kangpokpi districts. Imphal West is dominated by Meiteis and Kukis are a majority in Kangpokpi.
HT has seen photographs of one such unexploded bomb that Manipur Police have sent for forensic analysis. Manipur Police believe it originated from the Kuki groups and said that the explosives bore insignia, a charge the tribal bodies dismiss. This seized bomb had hit a mud and failed to detonate, said a second Manipur police officer.
“Our SP and IG had to duck and run towards their bulletproof cars when the drones started dropping bombs in Koutruk on September 1. There were almost 30-40 bombs dropped that day from drones. There were two types of explosives dropped that day. One was a crude bomb with a metal shell while the other had a plastic shell with the words Kukiland,” said the second officer.
Police also say most drones used that afternoon were assembled.
“Parts of the drone can be ordered online and assembled. We have recovered on such drone from the hills near the Koutruk village where the bombing happened. In June and July, Assam Police had busted many cases of people trying to smuggle flight batteries to Manipur. Now when we know what they were meant for,” a second officer said.
The Kuki Inpi Manipur, an apex body of all Kuki tribes, has accused the state government of trying to build a fake narrative by announcing that drone bombs were used by Kuki militants.
SNIPERS
Police have also flagged the increased use of snipers.
“Meiteis are in the valley, while Kukis are in the hills. Gunfights happen when one of them decides to climb up or come down to attack. Both groups know that instead of traditional combat, a sniper’s successful hit will demoralise advancing troops,” said the senior military officer cited above. “Snipers have attached powerful telescopes to the rifles, use it to aim correctly, and make the first hit successful.”
He said that in the first 12 months of violence, gunfights were reported almost every day; but now, such direct fights had dipped because of snipers hidden in bunkers and trees, using telescopic rifles. The most recent recovery of one such weapon was on September 9, when the forces found a 7.62 mm modified telescopic sniper rifle from the jungles of Lhunkhojang Ridge in Kangpokpi district
CHANGING STRATEGIES
On September 8, a police probe revealed that of the four men who died in a gunfight in Jiribam the previous day, three were militants from the Kuki Liberation Army, a militant group that signed a peace treaty with Centre in 2008, and the fourth was a part of the United National Liberation Front(Pambei faction) UNLF(P), another proscribed outfit that signed a peace agreement with the Centre in December 2023.
“We have reports that some of them have even added MGLs(multiple grenade launchers) to their rifles. The question one should ask is - who is teaching these militants to make such sophisticated weapons?” a mid-level central security force officer said.
Paramilitary officials say that the nature of the conflict are changing on the ground.
Snipers armed with telescope fitted guns have eliminated the need to physically cross boundaries, and grenades looted from armouries have lost their use, officials said.
“In just the last 10 days, we have recovered 36 grenades. All of them were (HE 36) High Explosive 36 grenades.When they have access to rockets why would be need grenades? They now use the grenades to burn abandoned houses. A house that was burnt in Thangbuh village on September 8 was started using HE grenades,” a police officer said.
This has created new headaches for the security forces in a state where the administration is already struggling to maintain law and order in the face of sectarian strife.
“Last week, when we saw the improvised rocket launchers that travelled almost 5-7 feet, some bureaucrats asked me about drone bombs and from where the militants were learning the technique of improvising weapons,” said a senior army officer in Manipur, who has been closely following the activities of militants on both sides. “Maybe Myanmar, maybe home-grown militants, or maybe it is what we were taught in school — necessity is the mother of invention.”