Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, February 27 2009:
Joint secretary Navin Verma of Ministry of Home Affairs (North East) is arriving Imphal tomorrow to attend a meeting of the Joint Monitoring Group (JMG) of the Suspension of Operation (SoO) scheduled tomorrow at the banquet hall of the 1st Manipur Rifles, official source said.
Members of the JMG are meeting tomorrow at 11 am to review the progress status of the works taken up like the identification of cadres of the outfits entering tripartite SoO agreements, progress of setting up of designated camps, enforcement of the ground rules of the agreement, the source disclosed.
Navin Verma will attend the separate meetings of the JMG which will be chaired by its chairman, DS Poonia, Additional Chief Secretary (Home).
Representatives of the state and union government in the JMG are holding separate meeting with the Kuki National Organization (KNO) and United People Front (UPF).
The joint secretary, HMA will represent the Union government in meetings which state officials like the DGP, Y Joykumar and IGP (intelligence) LM Khoute will also attend from the state government side.
Navin Verma will return back to the national capital, New Delhi on the same day at around 3.15 pm, according to the source.
The separate meetings with the KNO and UPF will prominently focus on the progress of implementation of the agreement on ground like the verification of cadres of the militants, setting up of designated camps in the places which have been indentified by a survey team of the JMG.
The meeting will also discuss on the payment of stipend to the cadres which governments had agreed while signing the agreement.
To mention here, in order to keep the cadres of the 18 different Kuki militant outfits, at least five location in...
the hills districts have been identified and Manipur government earmarked Rs.4,43,03,950 for the construction of designated camps.
The designated camp for the Hmar People Convention (D) will be at Vangai Ridge, a place located in Tamenglong district bordering with Churachandpur district, the designated camp at Nathanjang (Chongkhonjou) in interior Churachandpur district will be housing by the cadres of the Kuki National Front (P) and Zomi Defense Volunteers.
The designated camp of the United Kuki Liberation Front will be constructed at Chelap in Chandel district while that of the Kuki Liberation Army (KLA) and Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA) at Samusang area under Saikhul police station in Senapati district and for that of Kuki National Front (P) will be located at Sehjang (Gamnom) in Senapati district.
After several rounds of meeting of the JMG constituted by the representatives of the Manipur government, Centre and officials of the KNO and UPF, joint survey for the site selection for opening the designated camps and construction of the designated camps commenced from November last year.
A total of 22 designated camps will be set up in the said five locations as per the agreement, the source said.
The funds for the construction of the designated camps of the militants under the SoO agreement have been earmarked by the government of Manipur under the Special Plan Assistant, SPA.
The Manipur government and the Centre have signed an agreement for stopping counterinsurgency operations against Kuki militants in the state (suspension of operations) on August 22 last year.
The agreement was signed separately with KNO and UPF represented 11 and eight Kuki militant outfits respectively.
The Manipur Police Housing Corporation has been handling the construction of the designated camps and is targeted to complete by March this year.
The five sites where the designated camps are to be set up extend over four hill districts of Manipur and have been confirmed by a team of the Joint Monitoring Group (JMG) after conducted survey in the November and December last year, the source said.