Tura, Jan 21: Meghalaya, South Garo Hills district in particular, has become the only other state after Mizoram to establish an anti-insurgency jungle warfare school that will train troops from across the country to combat militancy that plagues states like Kashmir, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and vast swathes of the North East region.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Tuesday inaugurated the state’s first and only anti insurgency school in Baghmara, South Garo Hills. The establishment of the training school in South Garo Hills assumes immense significance- it is the most remote and forested region of the state, and was also the most militancy effected part of the state during the days of the ANVC and the GNLA militancy era.
The jungles of South Garo Hills jungles is where special forces of the state ventured into and broke the backbone of militancy in the Garo Hills, ending years of violence in this once peaceful state.
Vairengte in Mizoram was the country’s first counter-insurgency and jungle warfare school of the Indian army established 59 years ago (1967). It specialises in unconventional warfare, particularly counter-insurgency and guerrilla warfare. It remains one of the premier counter-insurgency training institutions in the world.
The establishment of the new anti-insurgency school in Garo Hills will help expand the training opportunities for the country’s special forces which, until now, solely fell on Vairengte, Mizoram.
Deputy Chief Minister in charge of Home Prestone Tynsong, Minister of Education Lahkmen Rymbui, Director General of Police Smt I Nongrang, Chief Secretary Dr. Shakil P. Ahammed, senior civil and police officials, and other dignitaries witnessed the inauguration of the anti-insurgency school at Baghmara- a region that is teeming with forests and a terrain that many would find challenging.
Internal security in the country remains a challenge for the state, particularly in Kashmir where Pakistani backed groups continue to terrorise the general public. Then there is the burning issue of the left wing Maoist movement that has spread its tentacles across central India. The states of Jharkhand and Chattisgarh have extensively suffered at the hands of the maoist insurgency, hundreds of lives lost, both civilians and security forces.
The Maoist insurgents have for years used the terrain, particularly the forests, to their advantage which is why Vairengte, and now, Baghmara will play a crucial role for the state in the battle for control and return of civilian rule to the most volatile regions of the country.
