'Streamlining Ops': What's 'One District, One Force' Policy Manipur May Adopt?

In August, the Manipur Police filed an FIR against the Assam Rifles for preventing them to conduct a search op.

A file photo of a security personnel patrolling a village in Bishnupur district in Manipur on 19 June.

(Photo: PTI)

"Among other things, a 'one district, one force' policy will reduce potential conflicts among the forces such as in the case of the Manipur Police and the Assam Rifles in August," a Delhi-based security official, who did not want to be named, told The Quint.

The official was referring to the events of 8 August when the Manipur Police filed an FIR against the 9th Battalion of the Assam Rifles, claiming that the paramilitary force obstructed them from conducting "search operations in an arms act case" related to Kuki militants who had allegedly attacked and killed three people in Kwakta town in the state's Bishnupur district early on 5 August morning.

Although there's no official order yet, the Manipur government is said to be considering adopting the 'one district, one force' policy to ensure accountability and better coordination of the security forces in the violence-torn state.

What exactly will the arrangement entail? How will it help the security forces? The Quint explains.

What is 'One District, One Force' Policy?

Under the proposed policy, only one paramilitary force will be entrusted with each of the districts in Manipur, according to the security official who spoke to The Quint on condition of anonymity.

"For instance, Churachandpur will be under the Central Police Reserve Force (CRPF) and Imphal East will be under the Border Security Force (BSF) and so on.

Security official

Apart from reducing potential conflicts among the forces, "this arrangement will also streamline operations, promote accountability, and foster better coordination between paramilitary forces and the state police," the official added.

“Having just a singular security force to monitor over a particular district will help fix accountability... The force will be accountable for everything that happens in the particular district. For instance, had the policy been in place, the incident surrounding the two Meitei youths would have been avoided to a large extent."

The official was referring to the alleged murder of two Meitei students from Imphal East who were purportedly abducted from a Kuki-dominated area and murdered in July 2023. The photos of their dead bodies, which surfaced recently, have become a flashpoint of fresh protests in Imphal.

An official told Hindustan Times that a unified command headed by Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh is likely to order a revamp of the security personnel across the state for the 'one district, one force' arrangement. “All these paramilitary forces will work in tandem with the state police. Though an official order is yet to be issued, this will happen soon,” the official added.

How Will the Forces Be Deployed?

The security official explained that at present, there are 214 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) deployed in the state where at least 175 people have lost their lives in the ongoing ethnic clashes between the Meiteis and the Kukis.

Talking about how the reshuffling will be carried out, the official added that while the BSF forces will only be deployed in the districts of Ukhrul, Churachandpur, and Imphal, the CRPF personnel will be deployed in Bishnupur, Kangpokpi, and other districts."

"The CRPF is the biggest force with 121 companies," the official said, which includes 10 companies of Rapid Action Force (RAF) and four companies of Mahila CRPF.

There are, however, exceptions to the proposed policy, the official said. He added that since the CRPF has more personnel, it is very likely that they may be posted in more than one district.

How Has Redeployment Been Carried Out?

The official said a redeployment has been carried out taking into account three prime factors to decide which force will be deployed in which district:

• contiguous inter-district areas

• in-situ deployment prior to deployment

• existing establishment for logistics support and command and control

For instance, the official added that the BSF has its existing establishment in Churachandpur besides being deployed there before the clashes started five months ago.

"The BSF was also deployed prior to the current unrest in Imphal East and Thoubal districts. With Kakching district neighbouring Thoubal and Ukhrul and Imphal East police districts sharing the inter-district boundary, Tengnoupal has contiguous district boundary with Thoubal district where NH 102 Asian Highway touches the international border town of Moreh thereby bringing these districts under the BSF's purview now," he added.

"The deployment of paramilitary forces may leverage existing offices or camps, with the CRPF likely to have a significant presence due to its larger personnel strength," the official added.

However, not everyone is in favour of the proposed policy.

Dr Ingudam Yaipharemba Singh, a professor from the department of national security studies at Manipur University, argued that such a move can prove detrimental.

"The government will essentially in a way be militarising Manipur the way it did with Jammu and Kashmir before 2019. We can see the results that years of militarisation has done to the state. There will be restriction on the movement of people, " he told The Quint, slamming the proposed move.