Manipur security crackdown on militants and drugs

In late July 2026, Manipur’s security forces intensified coordinated raids across multiple districts. On 24 July, operations in Imphal East, Kakching, Thoubal, Imphal West and Ukhrul led to the arrest of five militants from the Kangleipak Communist Party, Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup and the United National Liberation Front, alongside two drug traffickers whose seizure included 30 soap‑wrapped packets of brown sugar worth over ₹50 lakh. A large cache of weapons and explosives—including modified .303 rifles, pistols, a Chinese grenade and improvised devices—was recovered, and 112 checkpoints were set up to curb insurgent and illicit activity.

Three days later, on 27 July, similar intelligence‑driven sweeps expanded to additional districts such as Tengnoupal and further reinforced the earlier pattern. Authorities detained more hardcore militants from a broader list of banned groups, including the People's Liberation Army and Revolutionary People’s Front, and seized additional brown‑sugar shipments valued at several crore rupees. The raids again uncovered extensive arms stockpiles—self‑loading rifles, INSAS and AK‑series weapons, .303 rifles, pistols, Chinese grenades, locally‑made “Pompi” guns and thousands of live cartridges. Joint central‑state teams continued area‑domination and search operations in fringe and mixed‑population zones, underscoring an ongoing crackdown on both insurgency and narcotics in the state.