3 NSCN militants killed in Assam encounter, arms recovered

Guwahati, April 29 Three militants of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) were killed during an encounter with the security forces in Assam’s mountainous Dima Hasao district on Tuesday, officials said.

An Assam Police spokesman said that the encounter came after secret information that some armed cadres, who had given an extortion notice to National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) officials and engineers in Dima Hasao district, were hiding in areas under the Haflong police station.

Accordingly, a search operation was launched by Assam Police's Special Units and Assam Rifles on Saturday evening.

"Almost after 60 hours of search, on Monday, the search parties came across an armed group in the area between N Kubin-Hera Kilo. The armed militants fired on the security forces, who retaliated, and there was a heavy exchange of fire," the spokesman said.

Subsequently, an extensive search of the area led to the discovery of three dead bodies of militants, belonging to the NSCN. However, the faction of the NSCN they belonged to is yet to be known.

Two AK series rifles and a pistol were recovered from the forested areas, and a search operation is still underway.

Tuesday’s incident occurred within three days after three militants of the NSCN-K-YA faction were killed on April 27 during a fierce gun battle between the security forces and the extremists in Arunachal Pradesh’s Longding district.

Defence spokesman Lt Col Amit Shukla had said that two construction workers were kidnapped on April 25 from Pangchao areas in Longding district.

Based on specific information, troops of the Indian Army and the Assam Rifles launched a joint massive operation in the Pangchao areas on Sunday. "Wherein the contact was established and in the ensuing firefight, three cadres of NSCN-KY-A group were neutralised," he said.

One construction worker was rescued in the operation, and four automatic weapons, ammunition and other war-like materials were also recovered from the areas.

Meanwhile, the Army and Assam Rifles, in coordination with the Assam Police, earlier apprehended a wanted top cadre of the NSCN-KYA from Assam's Charaideo district. The NSCN-K-YA has earlier served an extortion notice of Rs 20 lakh to the public sector oil major Oil India Limited (OIL). The notice was signed by the outfit's self-styled Major, Tha Aung and sent to OIL's office in Manabhum, located in the Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh. The outfit in its notice sought Rs 20 lakh by December 10, and it has also warned that OIL would be held accountable for any delays.

The OIL has its operational site at the Manabhum reserve forest in eastern Arunachal, and the thickly forested reserve forest areas fall under both Changlang and Namsai districts.

The NSCN-K-YA has not signed a ceasefire agreement with the Centre.

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