NEW DELHI:
Six NSCN(IM) insurgents were killed in an encounter with security forces in Khonsa area of Arunachal Pradesh early on Saturday morning, military sources said.
One soldier of Assam Rifles was injured in the operation and his condition was stated to be stable, they said. Khonsa is in Tirap district of Arunachal Pradesh, and at a distance of 50 km from Tinsukia, a leading industrial town in Assam.
The encounter took place at around 4:30 am, the sources said, adding six weapons along with “war-like stores” were recovered from the area. The operation was launched by the Assam Rifles based on specific intelligence inputs that armed insurgents were present in the general area of Khonsa in Tirap district of Arunachal Pradesh.
“At approximately 4:30 hours, an operational contact was established with the NSCN (IM) insurgents in the area. In the ensuing firefight, six insurgents were neutralised,” said a source. The National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah) or NSCN (IM) is a militant outfit fighting for a separate homeland for Naga people for last several decades.
It has been holding talks with the Centre for resolution of the vexed six-decade-long Naga issue.
