Big Breakthrough: Kuki-Zo Council Agrees to Reopen National Highway-2

In a major development, the Kuki-Zo Council has agreed to reopen National Highway-2 (NH-2) to allow free movement of commuters and essential goods in Manipur, the Union home ministry (MHA) announced on Thursday.

This decision follows several meetings in New Delhi over the past few days between officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and a delegation of the Kuki-Zo Council. The discussions focused on resolving the prolonged blockade, which had severely affected the transportation of goods and vehicles, creating hardships for residents across the state.

“Kuki-Zo Council has given a commitment to cooperate with security forces deployed by the Government of India to maintain peace along NH-2,” MHA said in a statement.

NH-2 is a vital route connecting Manipur with Nagaland and other northeastern states. It had been blocked since May 2023 amid ethnic tensions between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities, which triggered widespread violence, loss of life, displacement of thousands, and a severe humanitarian crisis.

The reopening of the highway is seen as a confidence-building measure and a step toward restoring normalcy in the violence-affected regions. Officials in Imphal and New Delhi believe that easing the flow of essential supplies will help alleviate the difficulties faced by displaced families and civilians in relief camps.

In addition, the MHA said that a tripartite meeting involving representatives from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Government of Manipur, and the Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and United People’s Front (UPF) was held in New Delhi on Thursday.

“The meeting concluded with the signing of a tripartite Suspension of Operations (SoO) Agreement on re-negotiated terms and conditions (ground rules) to be effective from the day of signing of the Agreement for a period of one year,” the MHA mentioned.

 The MHA also pointed that “Kuki National Organisation and United People’s Front have also agreed to relocate seven designated camps away from areas vulnerable to conflict, reduce the number of designated camps, relocate the weapons with nearest Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Border Security Force (BSF) camps, and stringent physical verification of cadres by Security Forces to de-list foreign nationals, if any.”

As per MHA, going forward, a joint monitoring group will closely oversee compliance with the ground rules, and any violations will be addressed strictly, including a possible review of the SoO agreement.

(With ANI Inputs)