Imphal: The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (Cocomi) has issued a strong statement urging the government to take immediate and decisive action to counter the growing threat posed by armed Kuki militants to valley farmers.
Addressing reporters here on Friday, Cocomi convenor Khuraijam Athouba said, “We have been alerting the authorities for years. The pattern of security deployment is clearly inadequate. Armed militants are targeting farmers in their fields.”
With paddy cultivation underway, Cocomi demanded deployment of security personnel along the first line of hill terrain and foothill ranges bordering the valley’s agricultural areas.
“Our farmers have the right to cultivate their fields safely. Denying them of security is denying them a basic right,” Athouba said.
He said valley people do not oppose the presence of ordinary Kuki farmers cultivating nearby lands, as long as peace is maintained.
“The government continues to make safety assurances, but there is little implementation on the ground. The public is losing patience.”
Cocomi warned that failure to act accordingly could trigger mass public agitation. “The government must respond with urgency and seriousness.”
On Thursday a farmer working at Phubala was injured by a bullet allegedly fired by Kuki people while he was working in his paddy field.
In a similar incident on November 9, 2024, a woman farmer was allegedly shot by armed Kuki militants while harvesting paddy in Saiton village, located on the Bishnupur–Churachandpur border. Two days later, a 32-year-old male farmer also sustained a bullet injury in Yaingangpokpi Uyok Ching, Imphal East district.
