Imphal (Manipur) [India], February 28 : Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla has extended the deadline for voluntarily surrendering arms up to 4 pm on March 6.
The Manipur Governor's house issued a press release for the same. On February 20, Bhalla had requested the people of all the communities, especially those living in the valleys and hills, to voluntarily surrender looted weapons and ammunitions to the nearby police stations, outposts or security forces camp within seven days, the press release said.
Several people requested for the deadline to be extended and as the deadline for returning the voluntary arms and weapons expired. The Manipur governor considered the request of the people and has extended the deadline until March 6, the press release said.
On Wednesday, the Assam Rifles and Indian Army recovered 48 illegal weapons in a coordinated effort under the aegis of the Spear Corps, along with the Manipur Police and the state administration.
The surrendered arms were recovered from various locations across the valley and hill districts, including Imphal West, Kangpokpi, and Churachandpur.
According to officials, the surrendered weapons included 12 Carbine Machine Guns (CMG), eight 7.62 mm SLR, one AK 47 rifle, one INSAS LMG, six .303 rifles, four 12-bore single-barrel Rifles, one Single-Barrel Rifle, two country-made Rifles, six improvised/country-made mortars, one Under-Barrel Grenade launcher (UBGL) Gun, one revolver, one pistol, four rockets, ammunition, and war-like stores.
Meanwhile, earlier in the week, Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla and joint efforts in public awareness by District Police, Assam Rifles and CRPF, people in Manipur have begun surrendering illegally held weapons.On Tuesday, a total of 87 weapons were surrendered by the public to the following places Churachandpur, Imphal East, Bishnupur, Thoubal, Kangpokpi, Jiribam and Imphal West Districts.Additionally, the security forces conducted search operations in the fringe and vulnerable areas of hill and valley districts.