A man from the Meitei community who has been working as a supervisor for a civilian contractor at an army base in ethnic violence-hit Manipur has gone missing, leading to tension in the town in Kangpokpi district, some 40 km from the state capital Imphal.
Laishram Kamal Babu is a supervisor hired by a contractor of the Military Engineering Service (MES) at Leimakhong army base, the headquarters of the 57th Mountain Division, his family said.
His wife in a video statement appealed to the government and the army to search for him. The family is from Cachar in Assam. They have been living in Imphal West district's Khurkhul village.
Official sources told NDTV the army has been extensively searching for the missing man since yesterday. An army helicopter was also involved in the search, they said, indicating the scale of the search. Mr Kamalbabu is a familiar face and has been working in the area for the last 10 years, they said.
He was not seen on CCTV cameras installed in the area, the official sources said.
The army, on getting information that the supervisor had not returned home on Monday, immediately activated all resources and launched search parties in coordination with the police, officials said. Despite a thorough search of the areas, the individual and his two-wheeler could not be traced, they said.
Senior army officials met residents and assured them that all efforts are being made by the Indian Army and the police to find Mr Kamal Babu, they said.
A friend of Mr Kamal Babu told NDTV his phone was found switched off between 1 and 3 pm on Monday when his family tried to reach him.
"Kamal Babu frequently went to the army camp to monitor the work. He would also ride around everywhere in the area on an Activa (two-wheeler) to meet clients and suppliers. He was a familiar face. The workers hired by contractors in the area are from all communities, Kukis, Meiteis, Nepalis, others," Mr Kamal Babu's friend, who is also into the same line of work, told NDTV on phone.
"The army and some members from the contractors' union launched a massive search for him yesterday using sniffer dogs. They did not find him," Mr Kamal Babu's friend said, requesting anonymity.
He said entry to the Leimakhong army base is strictly monitored, and all civilian visitors have to make entries at the gate.
Mr Kamal Babu's family alleged the contractor union has confirmed to them that the gate logs showed he had entered but did not exit.
The rear of the army base has a small, unpaved road that goes towards Sekmai from the foothills, but is not used by commuters other than residents of nearby villages. All commercial and regular traffic use the national highway that bypasses Leimakhong.
Hundreds from the Meitei community protested near the army base, asking them to find the missing man. The army has blocked the access road to the base and positioned soldiers on both sides of the road for crowd control.
While there is ethnic tension between the Meitei community and the Kuki tribes in Manipur, there has been a rise in extortion by insurgent groups and fly-by-night gangs who threaten people to pay up "for the public good".
