The Army is reviewing the implementation of the amended Standard Operating Procedure for counter-insurgency operations in the Northeast which were put in place following the botched operation in Nagaland in December 2021, it said today in the first reaction after the Centre denied sanction to prosecute 30 army personnel allegedly involved in it. It is being closely reviewed on ground zero, Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen RP Kalita told reporters in Guwahati today.
14 young men were killed in the botched Nagaland operation.
"It was an unfortunate incident, an army court of inquiry took place and that has been finalised. Unfortunately, because of the stay order passed by the Supreme Court, the proceedings have been stayed completely. Alongside the inquiry, internally we have analysed the mistakes in that operation and taken a comprehensive review of the conduct of operation in those areas, and whatever necessary amendments had to be done on the SOPs for Nagaland, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, and upper Assam were already put in place. And we are now following up on how the troops are following the amended SOPs to carry out operations," Lt Gen RP Kalita said.
Welcoming the reduction of areas under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in the North East, Lt. Gen Kalita further said they are aware that there has been a massive reduction in areas under AFSPA twice recently, and the decision has been taken keeping in mind certain parameters and in a holistic manner.
"As the situation further improves, more and more places will see AFSPA rollback, and it's a welcome step," he said.
On the contentious Line of Actual Control, the de-facto border, with China, the Eastern Army chief said that the 'situation is stable'.
"Along the borders, the situation is stable. Any emerging situations or minor misunderstandings that have come in are being resolved through border talks by established protocols. There are robust methods existing and followed by both sides. Vibrant border village is key for the border areas, there is a lot of focus on stopping the migration of the border population," Lt Gen RP Kalita said.
He further said that they are aware that dual-use infrastructure is being built up by the Chinese all along the border, and revealed that our own capabilities are enhanced as we are also improving our infrastructure in border areas.
"Attempts from both sides have been to resolve disputes by talks. All the developments across the LAC are being closely monitored at different levels of our establishment so that we are well-prepared," he said.
The Eastern Army commander also added that the focus is also on the India-Myanmar border.
"At the India-Myanmar border, our troops, primarily the Assam rifles, are monitoring the situation very closely. No part of Indian territory is being used by any of Myanmar's rebel groups, there have been a few cases of bombings near the border against rebel groups, and we are constantly monitoring the situation," Lt. Gen Kalita added.
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