A joint team of security forces recovered 90 illegal firearms and a significant cache of ammunition and explosives during simultaneous operations across five districts of Manipur’s Imphal Valley in the early hours on Saturday.

The joint operations, one of the largest coordinated security crackdowns in the recent months, were conducted by security forces in the valley districts of  Imphal East, Imphal West, Thoubal, Kakching, and Bishnupur.

A statement from Director General Police, Manipur said that acting on specific intelligence about a large cache of arms, ammunition, and warlike materials concealed at various locations, coordinated operations were launched simultaneously at multiple sites in the peripheral and suspected areas of Imphal East, Imphal West, Thoubal, Kakching, and Bishnupur districts.

The coordinated operations led to the recovery of 90 weapons and 728 rounds of ammunition from multiple concealed locations. Among the arms seized were three AK series rifles, one M16 rifle, one INSAS light machine gun, five INSAS rifles, four self-loading rifles (SLRs), four rifles of .303 calibre, and seven pistols.

The cache also included 20 pistols, four carbines, eight rifles, 20 single-bore action guns, three anti-riot guns, one lathode gun, three double-barrel guns, six bolt action guns, three two-inch mortars, and a locally made pipe gun.

Ammunition recovered during the operation comprised 399 rounds of 7.62 mm, 228 rounds of 5.56 mm, 35 rounds of 303, 23 rounds of 9 mm, and six rounds of .32 mm. In addition, the forces recovered 21 grenades, one high-explosive mortar shell, nine tube launchers, and six improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The search also yielded 21 assorted magazines and 24 wireless handsets.

K Kabib, Inspector General of Police (Zone-II), said the operations were launched in the early hours of July 26 based on specific intelligence inputs. “These continued intelligence-led operations represent a major accomplishment for the Manipur Police and Security Forces in their continued mission to restore peace, uphold public order, and safeguard the lives and property of citizens. The Manipur Police reaffirms its commitment to fostering a peaceful and secure Manipur,” he said.

He urged the public to cooperate with the police and security forces and to promptly report any suspicious activity or information related to illegal arms to the nearest police station or the Central Control Room.

Manipur, currently under the President’s rule, has remained on edge since ethnic violence erupted in May 2023 between the Meitei community in the Imphal Valley and the Kuki community from the surrounding hill districts.