Shun violence and safeguard children, youth of Manipur — Assam Rifles DG

DIMAPUR — The lives of children and youth in Manipur have been greatly affected by the strife between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zo communities that has been continuing for the past eight months; their future is at stake, and thus there is no other alternative but to shun violence, said Lt Gen PC Nair, Director General (DG) of Assam Rifles.

The director general (DG) said this during a meeting with leaders of civil society organisations namely Hill Tribe Council, Kuki Students’ Organisation, Kuki Women’s Union, Human Rights Moreh, Kuki Inpi Tengnoupal, Tamil Sangam, Gorkha Samaj Samiti, and Manipur Muslims Council, on Wednesday.

He was on a visit to Moreh town in Manipur, situated on the Indo-Myanmar border, amid an escalated security situation since the last week of December and persistent attacks on security forces, informed an update from PRO, HQ IGAR (North).

He was briefed about the present security situation in Moreh by Sect Cdr Brig V P Yadav, it added.

After patiently listening to the issues faced by all the groups during the interaction with civil society organisation leaders, the DG told the gathering that “Moreh is a township that is very different from the other towns in Manipur because of its cosmopolitan nature.”

“People from the Kuki, Meitei, Naga, Tamil, Pangal, Gorkha, Sikh and other communities have been residing for decades in peace and harmony,” he added.

While assuring to look into their grievances, he said, ‘it is for the people of Moreh, particularly the women, to actively act towards restoration of peace’.

He also asked the civil societies to tell individuals ‘moving around with weapons that the Central Security Forces (CSF) would retaliate in an appropriate manner if provoked or fired upon’.

“It is in everybody’s interest to restore peace, and thus everyone’s responsibility to work towards it,” he said.