Security forces recover 85 per cent of looted police arms in Manipur
More than 4,000 additional weapons have been seized, raising concerns regarding illegal arms circulation and potential supply routes from Myanmar.
Security forces in Manipur have recovered 5,066 weapons looted from police armouries, which represents approximately 84.15 per cent of the 6,020 total weapons stolen during the conflict, according to News18.
In addition to the looted items, security forces have seized approximately 4,062 other weapons. These include US and Russian made firearms, such as M16A1 and AK series guns, along with ammunition and military-grade equipment.
A senior police officer told News18 that while many of the seized items are not looted weapons, some are old, sophisticated, or modified firearms.
Top officials claim that most of these additional weapons are supplied from Myanmar and can be identified easily.
The recovery of these thousands of weapons has raised questions regarding the origin and procurement channels of the firearms. Investigators are looking into whether the weapons entered through cross-border networks linked to Myanmar or were older weapons already in circulation.
While the recovery of the majority of looted arms is a significant step, 954 looted police weapons remain unaccounted for and continue to pose a security concern.