(Photo: @LokBhavManipur)
Imphal, February 5 (IANS) Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla on Thursday said that maintaining law and order remains the foremost priority of the government, as efforts continue to restore normalcy and ensure public safety across the state.
Addressing the first session of the state assembly this year, the Governor said that the coordinated efforts of the Central and state governments, security forces, civil administration, and community institutions have enabled Manipur to move steadily towards peace and stability.
“I would like to acknowledge the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for restoring peace and normalcy in the state. Intelligence-led operations, area domination, and coordinated cordon-and-search activities across vulnerable districts led to marked improvement in the overall law and order situation,” Bhalla told the house.
He informed the members that the unified security architecture has been reinforced through regular coordination at the Unified Headquarters and district levels. A total of 272 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), supported by state Police, Assam Rifles, and Army units, have been deployed to secure vulnerable areas, vital installations, highways, and farming zones, said Bhalla, who was the Union Home Secretary earlier.
He said that joint mobile teams, special operation groups, and anti-extortion units have been established across districts to counter criminal activity and restore public confidence.
Noting that the recovery of illegal arms remains central to restoring normalcy, the Governor said that so far, 7,313 arms, 83,512 rounds of ammunition, and 5,195 explosives have been recovered.
“The voluntary surrender of 1,078 arms during early 2025 reflects growing public trust in the peace process. In addition, 549 offensive bunkers across hill and valley areas have been dismantled, contributing significantly to the reduction of violence,” he pointed out.
The Governor told the house that to address extortion, a major obstacle to economic normalcy, a state and district-level anti-extortion units were established along with a 24x7 helpline, resulting in over 924 arrests.
Security forces have also undertaken extensive enforcement actions, including arrests, preventive measures, and recoveries linked to unlawful activities, he stated.
Bhalla said that with the support of the Central government, comprehensive humanitarian measures have been implemented.
“Direct benefit transfer to violence-hit Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) has been provided since November 1, 2025, replacing in-kind ration distribution to enhance dignity and choice. Phased resettlement has commenced under the Rs 523 crore Resettlement and Rehabilitation Package, including top-up assistance of Rs 1.70 lakh per house for 7,000 PMAY-G beneficiaries,” he said.
The Governor said that first instalments have been released to 6,300 families, with construction underway in most cases.
Assistance has also been sanctioned for over 2,200 partially damaged houses, while families with fully damaged houses have received immediate relief linked to verified return and resettlement, he said.
Resettlement efforts are being closely monitored by a state-level committee chaired by the Chief Secretary and District-level Committees under Deputy Commissioners. Alongside housing, comprehensive support has been extended for livelihoods, health, education, and employment.
The Governor said that over 430 youths have been trained under skill development programmes, livelihood assistance has reached thousands of families, health cards have been issued to nearly 10,000 IDPs, educational support has been provided to around 7,000 students, and employment assistance has been extended through special MGNREGS job cards.
The government will continue phased resettlement with enhanced security, extend financial assistance for another year in view of livelihood constraints, rebuild community assets, facilitate supervised visits to original villages and address the requirement of about 5,000 additional houses under PMAY-G during the 2026-27 fiscal.
Noting that combating the menace of drugs remains a major focus, the Governor said that under a zero-tolerance policy, large-scale destruction of illicit poppy cultivation of over 3,841.3 acres was undertaken across multiple districts, along with significant seizures of narcotics and pharmaceutical drugs during the last three years.
Financial investigations led to the freezing of assets, while demand reduction and rehabilitation efforts were pursued through awareness programmes and coordinated action under the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, he added.
Modernisation of policing also received sustained attention, Bhalla said, adding that the Cyber Crime Helpline is fully operational, a Cyber Forensic Division has been established, and CCTV surveillance has been expanded to 33 remote locations.
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