GUWAHATI: The government has asked the Army to conduct intensive combing operations in the North Cachar Hills of Assam to flush out militants of several outlawed outfits who have been using the jungles of the district as their sanctuary.

Militants of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) and the Human People’s Convention (HPC) had killed seven security personnel, including an Assam police officer and five BSF jawans, in a day light ambush at a spot barely 32 km from Haflong, district headquarters of North Cachar Hills.

Though initial reports had said that 15 persons had been killed, the government revised the casualty figures to seven after Eight missing jawans reported to their base in a critically injured state. The dead included the officer in charge (OC) of the Mahar police station, Sanatan Bora.

Intelligence reports suggest that the armed guerillas of the NSCN, by far the most potent militant outfit in the northeast have been moving into bases in North Cachar Hills from their traditional strongholds in Nagga land and Manipur to dodge the security forces.

Top state government sources told “The Times of India” News Service that the Army authorities have been formally requested to deploy troops in the disturbed region on a priority basis. The sources said that a similar request had been made to the Army through a communication as far back as May 5 but no action was taken.

Officials of the state government and the Union home ministry held urgent discussions on the situation arising out of the daring ambush. It is learnt that the governments in New Delhi and Dispur were keen on an early Army deployment in North Cachar Hills, a district in a borders the insurgency prone states of Nagaland and Manipur. ‘The strong presence of militants in the region is evident from the prolonged exchange of fire between the Mand the security forces at the ambush site. More than 70 BSF and police personnel were part of the raiding party which was ambushed,

A see-saw battle has been going on between the NSCN and the security forces in the north-cast in the last few months. While the militants killed three officers and 10 jawans of the Gorkha Regiment near Chezam in Nagaland’s Phek district on June 12, the security forces smashed a well equipped base of the NSCN at Palomi on July 22.

What is of concern to the security forces is the operational links that have been established between various groups in the north-cast. The NSCN, the HPC and ULFA hardliners are known to be working in tandem.

Ata series of secret conclaves held recently, leaders of various militant outfits have devised strategies for joint action to keep the security forces on tenterhooks. The regrouping of ULFA activists is also believed to be going on under the umbrella of the Indo Burma Revolutionary Front (IBRF), a federation of militant groups in the Indo-Burma region.

Article extracted from this publication >> Aug 21, 1992