Response
The initial response to the attack in a highly fortified area like Ragailong, meant the CM instructed the top brass of the security services to "take up all necessary measures so that such attacks do not recur." This especially rang true with the upcoming festivals of Diwali and Ningol Chakkouba, so as to ensure both pass off peacefully. The SSP of Imphal West, L Kailun, said "apart from intensifying security vigil at all strategic locations in Imphal, the police has also started conducting a massive drive to check any abandoned vehicles." An appeal was also made to citizens to be on high alert and to notify the police if they come across any suspicious objects in market places or crowded areas.
The bigger response to the attack saw the CM calling for the sealing of the border with Myanmar, he said: "We want the centre (federal government) to fence the border, we cannot let them (PREPAK) escape after the incident." An unnamed military commander also added that "We know where militants have their camps across the border, but we can't go inside Myanmar chasing them." In addition a senior intelligence officer in the region added that "Our plan is to fence the border and step up foot patrolling along the border, otherwise it will be difficult to control the situation."
India claims that as many as 3,000 rebels, use the jungles of the Kabaw Valley in Sagaing Division, for training camps and staging areas for incurrsions into India. Although India has signed a pact with Myanmar to share intelligence, it has proven insufficient to tackle the insurgency that is said to be caused by New Delhi's plundering of the region's mineral and forest resources with little investment returning. In retaliation the rebels want to throw non-Manipuris out of the province, while seeking statehood, a demand India does not acquiesce to.
About 700 armed PREPAK rebels have carried out regular attacks in the area. According to police, the rebels were believed to have escaped across a large porous border to their camps in neighbouring Myanmar. The border with Myanmar stretches about 370 km (230 mi), and security officials want the entire stretch to be barbed-wired to stop the smuggling of weapons and explosives. The entire area, home to more than 200 tribes, has been racked insurgencies virtually since India's independence.
Read more about this topic: 2008 Imphal Bombing
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