People from Manipur again returning to Assam, says official

Manipur violence

GUWAHATI — Even as a section of people who sought refuge in Assam’s Cachar district due to wide-scale violence in Manipur had earlier returned to their state after the situation improved there, they have again started taking shelter in temporary camps in Cachar, a district official said on Monday.

Soon after the violence broke out, around 2,300 people crossed the Jiri River at the Assam-Manipur border and entered the Cachar district, which shares a long boundary with Manipur.

The district administration provided the necessary arrangements for the refugees’ housing.

Jonathon Bhaifai, circle officer of Lakhipur sub-division in Cachar, said: “There were 13 shelter camps where the refugees took shelter. As the situation improved over the last few days, many went back to their homes. The refugee tally in the shelter camps decreased below one thousand.”

However, in the last couple of days, some people have again returned to the shelter camps owing to a security threat in their area.

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“Out of the total of 13 shelter camps, a few became empty as the refugees went back to their homes. But since yesterday, some people have again taken refuge in the camps, and the latest number has become 1,400,” the officer said.

Meanwhile, the Assam government earlier sent a police team comprising four officers headed by an IGP-level officer to bring back people of the state stranded in Manipur.