Northeast witness 80% reduction in militancy-related incidents since 2014, 6000 militants surrendered

The signing of an agreement between Assam and Meghalaya in March resolved disputes in 65% of areas of difference

The Ministry of Home Affairs on Sunday stated that tough steps taken against insurgency in the Northeast resulted in the surrender of 6,000 insurgents and an 80 per cent reduction in militancy-related incidents since 2014 when the Narendra Modi government came to power at the Centre.

A document released by the MHA said that security forces dismantled the "satellite camps" of insurgent groups operating from foreign soil following which at least four peace agreements have been signed with insurgent groups in Assam and Tripura (Bodo Accord, Karbi Accord, Bru-Reang Refugee settlement and NLFT). The long pending border disputes between states in the region are also being resolved through discussions, it said.

"This has given a push to integration and trust and has paved the way forward for long-term peace and progress," said the MHA document.

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"The year 2019 and 2020 witnessed the lowest number of insurgency incidents and casualties of civilians and security forces during the last two decades. In comparison to the year 2014, there has been a reduction of 80 per cent in the incidents of insurgency in the year 2020," it said.

The signing of an agreement between Assam and Meghalaya in March resolved disputes in 65 per cent of areas of difference.

The document said that due to significant improvement in the security scenario, the areas under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), 1967 have been reduced. In Assam, 60 per cent of areas are now free from AFSPA while 15 police stations in six districts have been taken out of the purview of the disturbed areas. In Nagaland, the AFSPA has been removed from areas under 15 police stations and only three districts and two police stations in another district in Arunachal Pradesh are under the AFSPA now. The act has been completely withdrawn from Meghalaya and Tripura.

Push to development

Along with efforts to end conflicts, the Centre increased allocation in order to revamp infrastructure and push development in the Northeast. "The total earmarked funds under 10 per cent gross budgetary support from 54 Central Ministries for expenditure on development work in the North East have been increased by 110 per cent from Rs 36,108 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 76,040 crore in 2022-23. A new scheme, the Prime Minister's Development Initiative for the Northeast, was also announced with an initial allocation of Rs. 1,500 crores.

Although BJP is increasingly flagging the initiatives taken for the Northeast ahead of elections in Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya early next year, militancy has still remained a worry in Manipur, Nagaland and parts of Assam. The process to sign the "final agreement" with Naga insurgent groups has remained stalled, several insurgent groups in Manipur have not yet joined the peace process. In Assam, the Ulfa group led by Paresh Baruah too has not joined the peace process.

The MHA document said that the Centre has focussed on three major areas: preserving the language and culture, ending the disputes and conflicts and transforming the Northeast into a developed region.