Itanagar, Mar 3: The Assam Rifles and Arunachal Pradesh Police have launched a massive operation against militants following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of a heavily armed group of ULFA (I) cadres inside the Manabhum Reserve Forest, spanning across Namsai and Changlang districts in eastern Arunachal Pradesh.
Namsai Superintendent of Police Sange Thinley said that security forces have sealed all entry and exit routes to prevent the militants from escaping.
Officials said the group infiltrated Arunachal Pradesh from its base in Myanmar with the intent of carrying out subversive activities and extortion.
At least eight individuals in the Chowkham area have received extortion notes from ULFA (I), demanding amounts ranging from ?15 lakh to ?1 crore, sources said. The group is also believed to be collecting its claimed share from illegal poppy cultivation in the region, they added.
Further details on the operation are awaited.