The entire 1,643-km-long porous border between India and Myanmar, known for smuggling of arms, ammunition and drugs, will be fenced at a cost of Rs 31,000 crore, sources said on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Home Minister Amit Shah said work on constructing fences 30 kilometres from the border had been completed, calling the border the root cause of ethnic violence in Manipur.
The Cabinet Committee on Security has in principle approved the construction of border fences and roads along the 1,643-km-long international border between India and Myanmar at a cost of around Rs 31,000 crore, sources said.
About 10 km of fencing has already been installed near Moreh and work is underway to construct another 21 km of fencing along the border in other parts of Manipur.
The border between India and Myanmar runs through Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
The central government has already abolished the India-Myanmar Free Movement Regime (FMR), which allows people living near the border to move 16km into each other’s territory without documents. It was implemented in 2018 as part of India’s Act East policy.
According to the sources, Home Minister Shah is regularly monitoring the security situation in Manipur and necessary measures are being taken.
Two battalions of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) have already been deployed in Manipur. In addition, around 200 companies (around 100 personnel in a company) of the central police have been deployed in the troubled states.
The Manipur government has started deploying 25 mobile vans as shops to supply essential commodities at fair prices to the general public. These wheeled shops are operating in all districts of Manipur, sources said.
In a new initiative, Kendriya Police Kalyan Bhandars (KPKB) have been opened from Tuesday to provide essential commodities to the people of Manipur at fair prices, authorities said.
In addition to the 21 existing police canteens, 16 new shops will be opened. Of the 16 new police canteens, eight will be in the valley districts of Manipur and the remaining eight in hilly areas.
Ethnic violence erupted in Manipur on May 3 last year after a solidarity march for the tribals in the hill districts of the state, which was aimed at protesting the demand of the Meitei majority community for Scheduled Tribe status.
Since then, more than 220 people from the Kuki and Meitei communities and security personnel have been killed in the ongoing violence.
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First publication: Sep 18, 2024 | 3:54 PM IST