Armed militia groups in the conflict-ridden state of Manipur likely used “impact explosives” attached to expensive drones that can fly at higher altitude to drop the bombs, security officials familiar with the matter said, commenting on events of September 1, when one person was killed in an attack where drones were used to drop explosives.
Their disclosure comes even as a committee of top officers from police, army and paramilitary forces in Manipur is preparing a report on the use of drone bombs by militants and will submit its report by September 13.
Over the last five days, Kuki militants have used drones to drop explosives in two more places.
“These drones are better than the ones used by Pakistan based smugglers to send drugs and weapons from across the border. They can fly longer and at higher altitude. The bombs are most probably home-made improvised explosive devices, which explode on impact when dropped. We dismissed the idea that militants are using digital detonators. It is an advanced technology. There was another suspicion that the militants used a proximity fuse, such as the ones used in grenades which have a timer. But this modus operandi too is unlikely as the drones are being spotted at a higher altitude. A proximity fuse takes 30-45 seconds to detonate. Attaching explosives to the drone, flying it at a height and then dropping it above a target takes longer,” a senior security forces officer said, asking not to be named.
In the last six months, security forces have shot down at least 18 drones in the valleys and hills of Manipur. But until last Sunday(September 1), drones were used by militants on both sides only for surveillance.
“Some of the drones that the forces shot down in these last six months, are expensive ones. We have seen these drones flying more than 100m in the air. The ones in Punjab fly at a much lower altitude. A lever that usually holds payloads such as pesticides, is moved by the click of a button on the remote control. The technology is a simple one, but it was never used by militants in India for dropping explosives,” a second officer said adding that the only time drones were used to drop explosives was during a terror attack at the Jammu air base in June 2021.
The second officer, who too asked not to be named said that the drones they shot down have a longer flight time of at least an hour and can travel almost 5-10 km. “Along the border in Pakistan, the drug smugglers don’t require very expensive drones. They just have to fly the drones with drugs over the border fence between villages in India and Pakistan. The distance there could be hardly 1 km. Militants here need to have drones that can fly to farther distance, which they seem to have acquired, based on the drones the forces have shot down,” the second officer said adding that the drones are being used by militants from both Kuki and Meitei side.
This officer added that over the past six months, several intercepted conversations of militants are about the financing of drones.
“Crowd funding is happening in both Kuki and Meitei sides. If people are unable to send manpower, the militants are demanding money to buy drones. There is a different department on each side that is at work to acquire drones.”
The Manipur police director general on September 2, on the Centre’s instructions, formed a committee of five top officials — army’s 57 Mountain divisions lieutenant general, the additional director general of Manipur Police, major general of the Assam Rifles, and inspector generals from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Border Security Force (BSF). The committee, according to a communication seen by HT from the police chief’s office, will have to “critically study and examine the drones used by militants, collect evidence, specification of the drones used and suggest ways to effectively counter such drones.”
A team of experts from National Security Guards and IIT Delhi are also in Manipur and working with the committee to study the use of drones to drop explosives and find ways to deal with this new challenge.
“What possibly started as ethnic clashes has escalated into something far bigger. If drones are being weaponised and used to drop explosives with over 2kg payloads on civilians, and fire projectile bombs over a distance of 5km, then this is a major national security challenge. This modus operandi is commonly used by terror groups outside our country. The cure to this menace must be prompt and different from what is being done now to prevent further deterioration in the security situation in the state,” said Lieutenant General Konsam Himalaya Singh (retired), a Manipur resident, who served in leadership roles in the army and headed the 27 Rajput in Siachen glacier during the Kargil war.