Army facilitates movement of board exam students, patients in Kangpokpi

Guwahati: The Indian Army’s Red Shield division has so far facilitated safe movement of 83 civilians from a sensitive zone between Leimakhong police station and Sapermeina in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district while encountering blockades, which were dealt with a mixture of calmness and firm negotiations with community leaders, a statement from the defence PRO said.

Covering an area of 20 km, the civilians included board exams students, as well as patients requiring medical attention.


Defence PRO Lt Col MS Rawat, in a statement, said, “The army convoy, escorting the civilians, encountered three blockades en route, which were successfully crossed by calm, yet firm negotiations with community leaders. The task was executed with meticulous planning, ensuring smooth and incident-free passage through sensitive areas.”

“Leimakhong is a semi-remote hill area, where lines of communication are limited, fragile and highly terrain-dependent. Connectivity relies on single-lane hill roads and tracks, prone to landslides and tree falls, with very few alternate routes. Detours are long, unsafe and can be closed quickly, especially during unrest. They were waiting in the village for about 10 days due to ongoing tensions and blockades at various places for safe passage,” the statement read.

Lt Col Rawat said the area — Leimakhong — consists of Nagas, Kukis and people from the Nepali community.

The statement further said that while a total of 53 students had been moved out of the critical zone, 15 were Class X students while 10 belonged to Class XI. 20 were studying in Class XII, while two BSc and six BA students, too, were included during the movement of the defence forces. “Board exam students included both CBSE as well as the state board students,” the statement read.

Lt Col Rawat added that while 12 civilians were in need of medical attention, 18 of them were seeking employment elsewehere.

“The successful conduct of this task highlights the Indian Army’s steadfast commitment to humanitarian values, civilian protection and conflict mitigation, reinforcing its role as a pillar of stability and reassurance for the local population during phases of unrest,” the statement said.