A stampede at the Sangam area of the Maha Kumbh early Wednesday morning resulted in several deaths and injuries as devotees jostled for space to take a holy dip on Mauni Amavasya. Eyewitness accounts describe a sudden surge of pilgrims, leading to a chaotic situation where many were trampled as barricades collapsed. Scattered shoes, slippers, and clothes at the site speak to the intensity of the stampede. Authorities are investigating the incident and have urged devotees to prioritize their safety.
Since the beginning of the Maha Kumbh last month, many influencers, models and actors have had their brief moment in the sun of virality: model-turned-sadhvi Harsha Richaria, garland seller Mona Lisa, 'IIT baba' Abhay Singh and actor Mamata Kulkarni to name a few.
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.
Firing between security forces and armed men has been reported from Pallel area of Manipur's Tengnoupal district since early hours of Friday, officials said.
The Manipur police dismissed the claims of Lt Gen PC Nair, a retired DG of Assam Rifles, in a recent media interview that no drones or rockets have been used in the attacks.
The Naga Rengma Hills Protection Force has claimed responsibility for the killing of nine people of the Karbi community, all residents of Assam's Karbi Anglong district on December 28.
'The issue of the larger homeland of Nagalim, the dream of the Nagas to hold sway over swathes of Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, is just that, a dream.' 'The NSCN has been told categorically that the government is not going to concede on this issue.'
A team of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials, led by the agency's Special Director Ajay Bhatnagar, will reach Imphal in a special flight on Wednesday to investigate the 'kidnapping and killing' of two students who went missing in the northeastern state on July 6, sources said.
'The visit of the honourable PM with the workable strategy towards conflict resolution will help greatly.' 'But visiting the state without concrete proposals may not bring the desired outcome at this stage.'
A large number of arms and ammunition of the police have allegedly been looted by the rioters during the violence.
The Maha Kumbh, billed as the world's largest gathering, concluded on Wednesday after 45 days, with lakhs of devotees taking a dip in the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and mythical Saraswati rivers. Despite a stampede that killed at least 30 people, millions continued to visit the Kumbh, seeking salvation through the ritual bath. The event saw a mix of faith, tradition, and technology, drawing pilgrims and tourists from across the globe.
At least eight persons have been killed and 18 injured, including two security personnel, in Manipur's Bishnupur and Churachandpur districts following continuous gunbattle between Kukis and Meiteis over the last 72 hours, officials said on Thursday.
The militants armed with sophisticated weapons surrounded the villagers of the Khamelok area bordering Imphal East district and Kangpoki district and launched the attack at around 1 am, the police said.
The people of Oting in Mon district in the northeastern state said they will erect a monolith in memory of the 14 people on the first anniversary of the killings.
To expect that these past decades of grief, inter-group killings, anxiety and fear will be brushed aside because of the Naga peace accord is being unrealistic. Memories are built on old wounds and they heal slowly. So, it is important to be cautiously optimistic, says Sanjoy Hazarika.
Manipur witness more violence on Tuesday when unidentified armed men, suspected to be cadres of banned terror groups, attacked people from the tribal community in the morning killing three of them in Kangpokpi district, officials said.
The Arambai Tenggol has been a focal point of controversy, with Kuki representatives blaming the organisation for exacerbating violence.
Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Unidentified "rioters" opened "unprovoked" fire at village Haraothel in Kangpokpi district of Manipur on Thursday morning, leading to tension in the area even as the army quoted "unconfirmed reports" to indicate some casualties.
The state government has also decided to write to the Centre demanding the repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, they said.
Protest rallies erupted in Imphal with thousands of students marching towards the centre of the city, sloganeering against the kidnapping and killing of two youths for the second consecutive day on Wednesday.
The incident took place in Khoijumantabi village late on Saturday night when the 'village volunteers' were guarding the area in a makeshift bunker, a police officer said.
An injured eight-year-old boy was killed along with his mother and another relative when an ambulance with the three on board was waylaid by a mob and set ablaze in Manipur's West Imphal district, officials said.
At the end of eight episodes, the climax is bound to leave you with questions but it would be fair to say that the two-episode backstory and the characters seemed far more interesting than the six-episode drama and tension that led to it, observes Divya Nair.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Friday said it has asked Manipur government to pay Rs 10 lakh compensation each within four weeks to the next of kin of all the people who died in ethnic clashes since May.
The incident occurred at Ningthoukhong Kha Khunou and the victims included a man and his 60-year-old father.
'I appeal to the Government of India to hasten the peace process,' he said.
Following the violence, the authorities clamped curfew for 24 hours in the area and reduced the curfew relaxation hours in several other districts.
The injured have been air evacuated to Mantripukhri and search operations are in progress, the Army's SpearCorps headquartered in Dimapur said on Twitter.
The move comes after the Manipur high court had directed the state government to operationalise mobile towers, on a trial basis, in all those district headquarters which have not been affected by the ethnic clashes.
The Kukis have already declared that they are not fielding any candidate in the parliamentary polls as an act of boycott.
Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Issac-Munivah wanted to join the operations against NSCN-K militants.
The much-delayed Telugu film Autonagar Surya is finally releasing today, June 27.
Manipur Police has registered a first information report (FIR) accusing the Assam Rifles of blocking their vehicle after an altercation between the two groups last week, while the state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to replace Assam Rifles 'by any other paramilitary force permanently' from the state.
Refuting the Army's contention that the incident was a result of mistaken identity, he said, "The ambush site was barely few metres away from the coal mining site and the villages are nearby. How could they lay an ambush so close to civilian residences?"
Chipu Menon, senior leader of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim-Khaplang faction, a self-styled brigadier in the outfit, was assassinated by suspected cadres of the rival NSCN-IM group at Mon in Nagaland on Thursday night, intelligence sources in New Delhi said
Singh said concerned with increasing deforestation and setting up of new villages by illegal immigrants, a Cabinet sub-committee was formed in February 2023 after a cabinet meeting attended by two Kuki ministers Letpao Haokip and Nemcha Kipgen.
Gunmen, who are yet to be identified, arrived in camouflage dresses in the Lilong Chingjao area, and opened fire targeting locals, they said.
Six tribes under Eastern Nagaland People's Organisation and a few other tribes decided to refrain from participating in the cultural programmes.
Living separately and refusing to co-exist in future, many members of both Kukis and Meitis communities ask - why elections at this time and what difference will they make?
