Conflict in India’s Manipur takes new turn due to drone attacks – The Diplomat

The Indian border state of Manipur is once again rocked by violence, this time in the form of attacks by armed drones. This is an unprecedented development in the country.

Since May last year, there have been repeated ethnic unrest between the Meiteis majority and the Kuki-Zo communities. Over 200 people have lost their lives and 60,000 people have been forced to flee their homes.

The drone strike on September 1 ended a three-month lull in the troubled state. The attack on Koutruk in Imphal West, which borders Kangpokpi district, came from the neighbouring hills and killed two people while injuring nine others. Imphal West is inhabited by the Meiteis and Kangpokpi is home to the Kuki community.

Another drone bomb attack the next day in Senjam Chirang injured three people. Attackers also seized two assault rifles and a light machine gun from the Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) after an attack on its post in Sagolmang in Imphal East district.

Four days later, on September 6, militants fired two rockets, killing one person in Bishnupur.

In the wake of these attacks, a video was posted on social media in which armed men claiming to be volunteers from Kuku-Zo village warned Meitei militants against laying ambushes on the Kangpokpi-Churachandpur road and in Kangpokpi, Churachandpur and Tengnoupal districts. The Meitei militants were ordered to vacate these places within three days or face consequences.

Manipur police described the drone attack as “unprecedented” and said it represented a “significant escalation” of the conflict in the state. Moreover, the involvement of “highly qualified professionals, possibly with technical expertise and support” could not be ruled out, police added.

According to media reports, the armed drones can operate at distances between 500 meters and 15 kilometers. They can be loaded with explosives, including hand grenades and mortar shells, and have a rotor system that allows them to also take pictures.

Police have formed a high-level committee to “critically investigate and study” the armed drones suspected to be used by Kuki militias to drop bombs. The committee will examine the available evidence and the specifications of the drones to find ways and means to counter such attacks.

The government has mobilised 198 companies of the central forces, in addition to the Assam Rifles, to restore law and order in the state. A counter-drone system called Dronaam has been deployed in vulnerable areas at the inter-district border areas. The equipment is part of a wider system that also includes the deployment of new, indigenously developed integrated drone detection and defence (IDD & IS) systems.

Thousands of people, including school and university students, took to the streets in five districts of Imphal Valley in Manipur to protest against recent drone and gun attacks. The protesters also expressed dissatisfaction with the government's handling of the ongoing conflict in the state.

On September 5, the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) issued a five-day ultimatum to the central forces stationed in Manipur to implement strict security measures against the Kuki militias responsible for the drone bombings.

A senior Kuki activist associated with a civil society organisation in Manipur has denied the involvement of members of his community in the drone attacks. He admitted that officials of some Kuki rebel groups were involved in the violence in Jiribam on September 6 in which five people were killed.

The difficult relationship between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities in Manipur has been going on for many years. However, the trigger for the recent violence came in April last year when the Supreme Court directed the state government to recommend to the central government that the Meitei community be included in the Scheduled Tribes category.

On May 3, violence broke out in the state after members of the Kuki and Naga tribes living in the hills of Manipur protested against the verdict. Meitei residents were attacked in Kuki-Zo dominated areas in the hill districts and in the Imphal Valley areas.

Following the recent attacks, security agencies and police are trying to trace the source and technology of the armed drones. A security agency official claimed that the drones were “non-military” and were assembled in Manipur using parts from different regions. Incidentally, in the neighboring state of Assam, police arrested a person with equipment for building drones in June. The accused was from Kangpokpi in Manipur.

“The technology is not very complicated. Armed drones have been used by resistance groups in Myanmar in several places with great success,” the official said, pointing to the involvement of several militant groups from Manipur in the conflict in the neighboring country. “So the availability of the technology in Manipur,” he said, “is not surprising.”

The use of armed drones is a worrying development in the conflict in Manipur. The violent outbreaks in the state in recent days show the hollowness of Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh's claims that peace will be restored within six months. Before the recent attacks, there was also speculation about a breakthrough by the chief minister's appointed envoys. It remains to be seen whether the government can actually take effective measures to contain the violence and bridge the gap between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities in Manipur.