Drones are a new technology added recently to the weapons used in the violence between the two large ethnic groups -- Meitei and Kuki -- in the northeastern state, which left over 200 people dead since May last year.
There was a brief lull between 3 am and 6 am, but the sounds of indiscriminate firing from Phayeng and Singda villages in the Kangchuk area along the two districts resumed after that.
Operations are underway to trace three women and three children, who have been reported missing since the violence erupted in Jiribam on Monday, IGP (operations) IK Muivah said.
The Manipur police said all personnel of the force from top to bottom are united and any attack on anyone and use of social media to target any officer or unit will be taken seriously and stringent action will be taken.
In separate incidents, automatic gunfire was reported from Kwakta in Bishnupur district of Manipur and Kangvai in Churachandpur district through the night.
Meira Paibis, a collective of Meitei women, on Friday staged sit-in demonstrations across five districts of Imphal Valley in protest against the alleged gang rape of a 37-year-old woman in Churachandpur on May 3, when the ongoing ethnic violence started.
So far, over 30 people have died across Northeastern states due to heavy rainfalls, floods and landslides, according to media reports.
Attempts to resume Manipur State Transport (MST) services on Saturday suffered a setback after buses heading from capital Imphal to the hill districts could not go beyond Imphal valley.
Eight firearms and 112 rounds of ammunition were recovered from different districts of violence-hit Manipur during search operations by security forces, police said.
Eight persons -- all non-Manipuris -- were killed and seven others seriously injured when a powerful bomb exploded at Nagamapal area in Imphal West district of Manipur on Friday evening, police sources said.
Life in the north-eastern state of Manipur continued to limp back to normal as curfew was relaxed in 11 districts, including Imphal West, Bishnupur, Churachandpur and Jiribam, for six hours from 5 am, as no fresh incident of violence was reported, officials said on Wednesday.
Clashes erupted between agitators and police in Greater Imphal area on Sunday as supporters of introduction of Inner Line Permit in Manipur continued their defiance of the curfew, which stepped into the fifth day, and took to the streets in large numbers.
The incident occurred at Kwakeithel Mayai Koibi under Lamphel police station a day after classes 1 to 8 began in the state after two months because of the violence.
A shutdown has been observed since 5 am on Tuesday in Kuki-Zo majority areas in the hills to protest against the killing of suspected insurgents, the officials said.
At Thamnapokpi under Moirang constituency in Bishnupur district, armed men fired several rounds in the air near a polling booth prompting voters to flee, police said on Friday, adding additional security personnel were rushed to the spot to contain the situation.
A village volunteer was killed in a gunfight between two warring communities in Manipur's Kangpokpi district, officials said on Thursday.
Two Central Reserve Police Force personnel also sustained injuries during the heavy exchange of fire that happened at Jakurador Karong in the Borobekra sub-division, they said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Mizoram, Manipur, Assam, West Bengal, and Bihar to launch infrastructure projects, participate in Bhupen Hazarika's birth centenary, and attend the Combined Commanders' Conference.
The Indian Army has launched a massive search operation for a man who went missing from the fringe areas of the Imphal Valley two days ago. Laishram Kamalbabu Singh, a works supervisor for a contractor working with the Military Engineering Services (MES) in Leimakhong Military Station, disappeared after leaving home on Monday afternoon to report for work. The Army is using all its resources, including tracker dogs, drones, and aerial platforms, to locate Singh. The incident has led to tensions in the area, with hundreds of people from the Meitei community demanding information about Singh's whereabouts.
Fifteen houses were set on fire in Manipur's Imphal West district where fresh violence broke out, officials said on Sunday.
The National People's Party (NPP) has withdrawn support from the BJP-led government in Manipur, citing the government's failure to resolve the ongoing crisis and restore normalcy in the state. The NPP, which has 7 MLAs in the Manipur Assembly, made the decision after recent incidents of violence and protests in the state. The BJP continues to hold a majority in the Assembly, with 32 legislators, and the withdrawal of support is not expected to affect the government's stability.
An attempt was also made to torch another property of the consumer and food affairs minister and his residence at Khurai in the same district on Friday night but timely intervention prevented it.
The security agencies have been warning that militants belonging to United National Liberation Front, People's Liberation Army and other banned groups had become part of the mobs and carrying out sneak attacks on security forces as well as giving directions to the agitators.
The death toll from clashes a day before rose to five on Monday as three more people, who were undergoing treatment in hospitals, succumbed to their injuries, they said.
The Chief Minister of Manipur, N Biren Singh, has received "key evidence" related to the disappearance of a 56-year-old man who has been missing for 10 days. The evidence suggests the man disappeared from an army camp in Kangpokpi district. The Joint Action Committee (JAC) formed to find the missing man, Laishram Kamalbabu Singh, presented the evidence to the CM. Despite the evidence, the JAC remains dissatisfied with the ongoing search efforts and accuses the security forces of reluctance to cooperate. The Indian Army has deployed over 2,000 personnel in the search operation, which is taking place in a military camp surrounded by hills where the Kuki people live. The disappearance comes amid ongoing ethnic violence in Manipur, which began in May 2023.
Altogether 127 checkpoints were installed in the valley and hill districts of the northeastern state, and 873 people were detained on Wednesday for violation of rules.
The shutdown was called by Kuki-Zo groups, including the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) and Kuki Students Organisation (KSO), in protest against Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh's statement about militants entering the state from outside.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Thursday said the state government is working towards peace talks and has held several meetings in Assam's Silchar.
Six people -- three women and three children -- belonging to the Meitei community had gone missing from a relief camp in Jiribam after a gunfight between security forces and suspected Kuki-Zo militants that resulted in the deaths of 10 insurgents on November 11.
Security forces fired several rounds in the air to disperse the mob, officials said.
In most parts of the landlocked northeastern state, items such as rice, potato, onion and egg besides LPG cylinders and petrol are selling at rates much above the ones fixed by the government.
One person killed was killed and five were injured in a powerful bomb blast at Uripok Tourangbam Leikai area in Imphal West district on Thursday evening, official sources said.
A large number of women from Malom in Imphal West district blocked the road to the airport in protest against the killing of the policemen in Moreh.
A mob tried to attack Chief Minister N Biren Singh's empty ancestral house on Thursday night, despite a security clampdown and curfew in the Imphal valley.
An IED went off at about 9 am near off a BSF camp at Moirangpurel area, injuring a seven-year-old girl Tinoi in Imphal East district.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Tuesday condemned the drone bomb attacks on civilians as acts of terrorism and vowed a firm response.
Representatives of the Committee on Mass Protest against Assam Rifles organised sit-ins to protest against the paramilitary force's legal notice to Republican Party of India-Athawale national secretary Maheshwar Thounaojam for harming the "reputation of the organisation".
The members were arrested on Monday for threatening people and obstructing the land demarcation process in Thoubal district.
The jawan performed his duty well and did not allow the rioters to loot the police weapons store, security officials said.
The Indian government has sent an additional 50 CAPF companies, comprising over 5,000 personnel, to Manipur to address the challenging security and law and order situation in the northeastern state. This comes after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) deployed 20 additional CAPF companies to the state following violence in Jiribam district. The deployment brings the total number of CAPF companies in Manipur to 218. Union Home Minister Amit Shah will also meet to review the security situation in Manipur and strategize to handle the volatile situation in the state.
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