Friday's attack came days after insurgents used drones to drop explosives amid violence in restive state
MUMBAI: Schools were ordered shut from Saturday in the restive Indian state of Manipur after a rocket attack by insurgents killed a civilian and wounded six others.
Fighting broke out in the northeastern state more than a year ago between the predominantly Hindu Meitei majority and the mainly Christian Kuki community.
The victim, who lived alone in an isolated area about 5 kilometers from the district headquarters, was attacked by militants who stormed his house and shot him when he was sleeping.
Following the killing, a heavy exchange of gunfire erupted between armed members of the warring communities in the hills, approximately 7 kilometers from the district headquarters.
Two rockets were fired, with one hitting Tronglaobi in Bishnupur, damaging two structures, and the second striking the compound of former chief minister Mairembam Koireng's residence in Moirang town, officials said
The rocket attacks came close on the heels of the use of drones to drop crude bombs on people at two nearby places in Imphal West district earlier this week.
This is the first time drones and rockets have been employed in the ongoing ethnic conflict that has left over 200 people dead and displaced nearly 50,000 since violence between the majority Meitei community and the Kuki-Zo tribes erupted in May last year.
The rockets were fired on the day when thousands of people across five districts of Metei-majority Imphal Valley formed human chains to protest the strikes by militants.
In response to the attacks, the Manipur government announced the closure of schools and heightened security measures, with forces being deployed to the peripheries of valley districts.
"Security forces are on high alert and moving towards the periphery of valley districts, notably on the side Bishnupur bordering Churachandpur, and Imphal West bordering Kangpokpi districts," a central security force official told PTI.
Officials said that the rocket missiles were locally improvised and fired from the Thangjing hill ranges in Churachandpur district.
Following the two attacks within a gap of around 10 hours, all markets and business establishments were shut down in Moirang town and the rest of Bishnupur district and border areas of nearby districts of the state.
Local lawmaker T Shanti and Minister L Sushinro Meitei visited the affected areas to assess the situation.
"The people are clueless now. This is a new form of warfare, for which no one is prepared," a local village volunteer said.
The use of drones as a weapon was first noticed in Manipur on September 1 at Koutruk village in Imphal West district, leaving two persons dead and nine injured.
The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), an apex body of valley-based civil groups, has declared a "public emergency" across five districts of the Imphal Valley, accusing the government of failing to protect its citizens.
Protests, including human chains involving students and women, were held in several districts condemning the recent attacks.
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