Manipur: Meitei civil body urges govt to act after attack on farmers
A 60-year-old farmer sustained a bullet injury on his left arm after he was allegedly shot by Kuki militants while working in paddy field at Phubala in Bishnupur district
Imphal: The coordinating committee on Manipur integrity (COCOMI), an apex Meitei civil body, issued a statement on Friday urging the government to take necessary action to counter the growing violence during the ongoing cultivation season.
This comes a day after a 60-year-old farmer, Ningthoujam Biren, sustained a bullet injury on his left arm after he was allegedly shot by Kuki militants while working in his paddy field at Phubala in Bishnupur district.
“We have been alerting the authorities for years. The current pattern of security deployment is clearly inadequate. Armed militants are targeting farmers in their fields, and this latest incident only reinforces our warnings,” COCOMI convenor Khuraijam Athouba said.
A clash also broke out on Sunday morning in Imphal East after a Meitei farmer from Leitanpokpi allegedly arrived with a tractor to plough a paddy field in Sadu Lampak, near a Kuki village. No casualties were reported.
With paddy cultivation underway, the COCOMI has demanded deployment of additional security personnel along the first line of hill terrain and foothill ranges bordering the valley’s agricultural zones. “This is the cultivation season. Our farmers have the right to access and cultivate their fields safely. Denying them this security is denying them a basic right,” Athouba added.
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Clarifying that people in the valley do not oppose Kuki farmers cultivating on nearby lands, Athouba said, “But the security forces must act decisively against those carrying arms and threatening either of the community.”
Athouba accused the government of only issuing statements but making little implementation on the ground. “The public is losing patience. This must be the last time such an incident occurs. The government must respond with urgency and seriousness. If not, we could witness another wave of massive public protests,” Athouba said.
COCOMI has urged the government to take strong measures to neutralise threats from armed groups on both sides, said Athouba.
