Chief of the Army Staff General Manoj Pande on May 25
| Photo Credit: PTI
Army Chief General Manoj Pande will visit Manipur on May 27 to review the situation in the violence-hit State, officials said.
The Eastern Army Commander Lt. Gen. Rana Pratap Kalita will also accompany the Army Chief during his two-day visit to the State.
A senior Army official told PTI that General Pande and Lt. Gen. Kalita will reach Imphal from Delhi to review the ground situation on the backdrop of ongoing ethnic clashes between communities.
“General Pande will meet the Governor, Chief Minister and Security Advisor to discuss the situation,” he added.
General Pande and Lt. Gen. Kalita will also meet the ground commanders, including those from other forces, and review the law and order situation.
General Pande is scheduled to return on May 28, while Lt. Gen. Kalita is likely to stay back for Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visit to Manipur from May 29, Army sources said.
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Clashes broke out in Manipur after a “Tribal Solidarity March” was organised in the hill districts on May 3 to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
The violence was preceded by tension over the eviction of Kuki villagers from reserve forest land, which had led to a series of smaller agitations.
Meiteis account for about 53% of Manipur’s population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Tribals — Nagas and Kukis — constitute another 40% of the population and reside in the hill districts.
The ethnic clashes claimed over 70 lives and some 10,000 army and para-military personnel had to be deployed to bring back normalcy in the Northeastern State.