New Delhi: Following the Home Ministry’s directive, the newly elected Manipur government has directed security agencies in the state to intensify search operations to arrest those involved in anti-social activities and recover weapons and ammunition.
According to this, in the last 48 hours, a large cache of weapons and ammunition was recovered from two different locations in the state in a joint operation by the Manipur Police and the Assam Rifles. Assam Rifles officials told ETV Bharat that the first recovery occurred on Sunday.
A large quantity of weapons and ammunition was recovered during a search operation in Pallel, Kakching district, Manipur, including an AK-47 rifle, a pistol, two improvised mortars, a single-barrel rifle, 14 IEDs, two live mortar bombs, ten rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, and other explosive materials.
An Assam Rifles spokesperson said, “We used drones, metal detectors, and dog squads to locate a hideout containing an AK-47 rifle, a pistol, two improvised mortars, a single-barrel rifle, fourteen IEDs, and other explosives.” A similar search operation on Monday yielded another cache of weapons and ammunition at a different location in Manipur.
The spokesperson added, “Two single-barrel rifles, a .303 rifle, four 9mm pistols with magazines, and three 36-inch hand grenades were recovered during a search operation in Nongdam, Imphal East district. The weapons recovered at the scene were handed over to the Manipur Police, while the IEDs were safely destroyed in situ.”
This major search operation was launched after the formation of a popular government in Manipur after years of unrest. Similarly, security agencies have launched a major campaign against illegal opium cultivation in Manipur.
Meanwhile, in the Shonglong area of Kangpokpi district of Manipur, a joint operation by the Assam Rifles, CRPF, and state police destroyed two poppy fields covering approximately seven acres, yielding approximately 50 kilograms of opium. Its market value is estimated to be several crores of rupees.
During Sunday’s operation, a makeshift hut containing materials and supplies used for drug manufacturing was also destroyed. A Burmese Kenbo motorcycle was also seized from the scene.
Notably, the Meitei Alliance, an organization of the Meitei diaspora, on Monday appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare illegal opium cultivation in Manipur a national security and environmental emergency.
Submitting a memorandum to PM Modi, the Meitei Alliance also demanded the creation of an integrated central task force comprising security, intelligence, forest, and revenue authorities to eradicate illegal opium cultivation in Manipur in a timely manner.
The Meitei Alliance has also appealed to Modi to strengthen Indo-Myanmar border management. The Meitei Alliance claimed that a major cause of the years-long crisis in Manipur is the rampant growth of illegal opium poppy cultivation in the state’s hill districts and cross-border drug trafficking, which fuels a narco-economy that fuels divisive ethnic politics.
Manipur shares a 398-kilometer border with Myanmar, and this border is largely open, making it a safe passage for drug traffickers. According to the United Nations’ Myanmar Opium Survey 2025 report, opium cultivation in Myanmar increased by 17 percent last year, from 45,200 hectares in 2024 to 53,100 hectares in 2025. Significantly, Myanmar has been the world’s main source of illegal opium since production ceased in Afghanistan, where cultivation declined by about 95 percent after a Taliban ban in 2023.
