Large cache of arms, ammunition recovered in Manipur: Police

Joint security forces carried out a series of coordinated operations across the valley districts in Manipur based on inputs regarding a large stockpile of illegal arms and warlike materials

IMPHAL: Security forces recovered 86 weapons along with 974 rounds of ammunition and other warlike stores during an operation conducted across five valley districts of Manipur early on Tuesday.

In total, 86 firearms and 974 rounds of ammunition were recovered from various locations in Manipur.

Inspector General of Police (Zone II), K. Kabib, made the announcement at the Manipur Police Headquarters in Imphal on Tuesday. He said joint security forces had carried out a series of coordinated operations across the valley districts in the early hours of Monday based on specific intelligence inputs regarding a large stockpile of illegal arms and warlike materials.

The operations were launched simultaneously in Imphal East, Imphal West, Thoubal, Kakching, and Bishnupur districts. Joint teams comprising personnel from the Manipur Police, Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), the Army, and the Assam Rifles targeted several peripheral and high-risk areas during the operation.

The recovered arms include five AK-series rifles, three INSAS rifles, sixteen self-loading rifles (SLRs), five .303 rifles, nineteen pistols, two carbines, sixty assorted rifles, sixteen single-barrel and bore-action guns, two anti-riot guns, one joint venture protective carbine (JVPC), one double-barrel gun (DBBL), six bolt-action guns, and one two-inch mortar. In total, 86 firearms were recovered from various locations.

Security forces also seized a significant quantity of ammunition and explosives. These included nine grenades, 526 rounds of 7.62 mm live ammunition, 226 rounds of 5.56 mm, 190 rounds of .303 ammunition, seven rounds of 9 mm, and four rounds of .32 mm. In addition, six high-explosive mortar shells, two tube launchers, and four improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were recovered, bringing the total count of ammunition seized to 974 rounds.

Further recoveries included 41 assorted magazines and six wireless communication handsets.

Earlier, on February 27, security forces recovered a total of 307 weapons out of which 246 were deposited by Arambai Tengol, a Meitei group. On June 14, 328 weapons and 10,600 ammunition were recovered. On July 4, 203 weapons and huge amount of ammunition were recovered from hill districts of Manipur.

Over 6,000 weapons were looted from the state armoury since violence erupted in the state in 2023.