At strife-hit Manipur, ethnic rivals use drones to target each other
Meanwhile, the Army and Assam Rifles, too, are using drones to track troublemakers and rescue civilians.
Manipuri community in Chennai came together to organise a sit-in for peace in their home state, on Sunday (Credits: Hemanathan M)
BISHNUPUR: Giving a glimpse of modern-day war fields, the rival ethnic groups are using drones to target each other in strife-hit Manipur where the clashes since May 3 have already claimed dozens of lives. Meanwhile, the Army and Assam Rifles, too, are using drones to track troublemakers and rescue civilians.
Security agencies said quadcopters have been put to use by warring factions - Meiteis, mostly concentrated in Imphal valley, and Kukis, mainly on the hillside - to know each other’s positions.
At places like Phougakchao, Kangvai Bazar, and Torbung Bazar in the southwest part of Manipur where their villages face each other, quadcopters are being put to extensive use by the two communities.
As mistrust runs deep, the two communities are relying on technology to monitor each other’s movement, said officials, adding that there is intermittent firing when these groups take shots at the quadcopters that are available freely in the market.
In one instance, rioters in Imphal city brought down a quadcopter using stones, as it was helping in navigating the marching troops in the narrow lanes and bylanes.
Quadcopter, often called a quadrotor, is an uncrewed rotary wing aircraft that can take flight using four rotors, each consisting of a motor and propellers. Unlike conventional fixed-wing aircraft or helicopters that rely on engines or tail rotors to take flight, quadcopters have neither. They can hover in place, whereas fixed-wing aerial drones have to be on the move constantly.
They are also capable of much more precise aerial maneuvers compared to fixed-wing aerial drones.
But drones have also assisted the Army and Assam Rifles in rescue operations and helped save nearly 2,000 civilians in the Kakching district of South East Manipur. The security forces located arms assailants using drones which were followed up by blocking their locations and engaging them in a fight while the other teams rescued the civilians using a different road from Serou to Pangaltabi.