Correspondent

Imphal, June 14: Security forces in Manipur recovered a huge cache of weapons and ammunition during coordinated overnight raids across five valley districts, officials said on Friday.

The joint operations were conducted between the night of June 13 and the early morning of June 14 by personnel from the Manipur Police, Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), the Indian Army, and the Assam Rifles. Acting on specific intelligence inputs, the forces carried out raids in Imphal East, Imphal West, Bishnupur, Thoubal, and Kakching districts.

A total of 328 firearms were recovered during the operation. These included self-loading rifles, INSAS rifles, light machine guns, AK-series rifles, carbines, MP5s, Amogh rifles, an AR-15, pistols, flare guns, a mortar, and barrels. Alongside the weapons, over 10,600 rounds of live ammunition were seized, consisting of bullets compatible with a range of rifles and pistols. The security teams also recovered hundreds of magazines, grenades, lathodes, detonators, and para rounds.

Officials said this marks one of the most significant seizures in recent months and represents a major step in efforts to curb the spread of illegal arms in the state.

Manipur’s Additional Director General of Police, Lhari Dorjee Lhatoo, said the police will continue such search operations and urged the public to report any illegal weapons or suspicious activity to nearby authorities.

The crackdown is part of a broader campaign to recover arms that were looted following the outbreak of violence in May 2023, when more than 6,000 firearms and large amounts of ammunition were taken from police stations across the state.

In February this year, Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla had issued a one-week deadline for the voluntary surrender of illegal weapons, underscoring the administration’s focus on restoring peace and security.