New Delhi/Imphal, June 16, 2025: In a significant development toward restoring normalcy in Manipur, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and representatives of KNO-UPF (Kuki-Zomi-Hmar) insurgent groups reached an understanding on Monday to close and relocate several designated camps operating under the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement.
According to a senior government official, the decision was made during a high-level meeting held on June 16 between MHA officials and leaders of the Kuki-Zomi-Hmar armed groups. The talks focused on key security concerns, including the recovery of looted weapons, reopening of National Highways 2 and 37, and the relocation of insurgent camps near Meitei-inhabited foothill areas. Security agencies proposed shutting down 7 of the 14 existing camps, citing proximity to sensitive zones.
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| Rep.Image: File Photo |
The dialogue, which resumed on June 9, 2025, marks the first formal engagement since the tripartite SoO pact became inactive on February 29, 2024, following the Manipur government’s withdrawal. The remaining two signatories - the MHA and the KNO-UPF groups - have continued bilateral efforts to revise the agreement’s terms.
“No deadline has been fixed for the extension of the pact. It depends on adherence to updated ground rules,” the official said, adding that the next round of talks is scheduled after 15 days.
A representative of the SoO groups said the evolving situation since the outbreak of ethnic violence in May 2023 has altered their demands, prompting the need to revisit the original terms of the 2008 agreement. “The process to finalize new ground rules is ongoing. The closure of camps is part of this wider discussion,” the representative noted.
Currently, around 2,200 cadres of the SoO groups - under the banners of the United People’s Front (UPF) and the Kuki National Organisation (KNO) - reside in designated camps spread across Manipur’s hill districts. The cadres have not received their monthly stipend of ₹6,000 since the eruption of violence last year.
The original SoO pact, signed in 2008 after violent clashes in the 1990s between Kuki and Naga communities, aimed to address longstanding grievances of the Kuki-Zomi-Hmar people, including demands for political autonomy. While the groups initially sought autonomy within Manipur, recent demands have evolved into a call for a Union Territory with a Legislative Assembly for Kuki-Zomi-Hmar inhabited areas.
Earlier, Union Home Minister Amit Shah also held a closed-door meeting with former Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh in New Delhi to assess the prevailing situation in the state and explore steps toward peace.
The reopening of NH-2 and NH-37, critical supply routes connecting Imphal to Nagaland and Assam, remains a top priority for the Centre amid ongoing blockades and security concerns in the region.
As both sides prepare for the next round of negotiations, the closure of camps signals a possible thaw in tensions and a step toward resolving the crisis that has gripped Manipur since May 2023.
