Imphal, Sept 18: Altogether 34 extremists have been killed and 661 others apprehended by CRPF personnel this year so far in seven north eastern states, the CRPF said today. The central para-military forces had also recovered 172 major arms and 3438 rounds of ammunition during the period, a CRPF statement said, adding that five CRPF men were killed and 35 others wounded in the encounters with ultras.
The statement, signed by public relations officer D G Mohapatra, said 352 companies of the CRPF were deployed in all north eastern states of Manipur, Assam, Nagaland, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Mizoram to quell the insurgent activities and maintain law and order situation.
In Manipur, five BSF battalion personnel were replaced by 61 companies of the CRPF to take on the extremists, the statement said, adding that of the total strength in the North East, 156 companies were deployed in Assam, 77 in Tripura and 24 in Nagaland.
The statement said CRPF had also undertaken civic action programmes in most inaccessible areas of the region to win the confidence of the people and bring the people and forces together.
During the past four years, the CRPF had spent Rs 1.61 crore on this account and narrowed down the gap between people and the men in uniform, the statement added.
Bureau Report