Combing operation on for 4th day in Manipur, Army chief visits

Imphal

Chief of Army Staff General Dalbir Singh Suhag today reviewed the security situation in Manipur where a combing operation to nab insurgents responsible for gunning down six Assam Rifles personnel on May 22 continued for the fourth day.

“We are still searching for them. The terrain is very difficult to negotiate, with dense jungles and mountains. Our intelligence network is working and we are hopeful of getting some clues soon,” a military intelligence officer told PTI.

The officer said they are not sure if the militants have crossed the Indo-Myanmar border, which is about 25-30 km from Joupi in Chandel district, where the Assam Rifles convoy was ambushed.

During his visit, the Army Chief stressed on the need to carry out further relentless operation against insurgent groups active in the region.

Singh, accompanied by Eastern Army Commander Lieutenant General Praveen Bakshi, discussed the issue with Assam Rifles Inspector General (South) Major General V S Sreenivas and commanding officer of 29 Assam Rifles battalion.

He was briefed on the incident and on the ongoing combing operation and the steps taken to neutralise the insurgents involved in the attack.

While, CorCom, an umbrella body of the valley’s proscribed outfits, has claimed the responsibility for the ambush, the Army did not rule out the involvement of militant outfit NSCN(K), which was behind the killing of 18 army personnel in the same district last year.

The Army has already said it will hit back hard on the militants who carried out the attack, which killed a junior commissioned officer and five soldiers on May 22 afternoon.

The Army and Assam Rifles have been running a combing operation to trace the militants.

PTI