Aizawl, Nov. 23: Assam, Manipur and Tripura today put their security forces on high alert to prevent influx of militants into Mizoram which will hold its 10th Assembly elections on December 2.

Joint chief electoral officer Lalhmingthanga said the decision to alert the three states that border Mizoram was taken to prevent any attack by rebel groups before the polls.

The blueprint for the security arrangements in the bordering areas was prepared during recent meetings with the police top brass of Assam, Tripura and Manipur, he said.

The blasts in all the three neighbouring states prompted the Election Commission to be extra cautious when drawing up the security plans.

Lalhmingthanga said the Manipur government has pledged to deploy one battalion of Manipur Rifles along the border areas in Churachandpur district, which has a high concentration of Hmar and Zomi militants. Both groups have stakes in Mizoram.

Election officials recently held a meeting with the deputy commissioner and superintendent of police of Churachandpur on the security requirements.

The Mizoram government is also anxious about possible forays of the Hmar People’s Convention (Democratic) and its ally, the Zomi Liberation Front, into the Hmar-inhabited border areas in the state’s northeastern flank bordering Manipur in the run-up to the polls. The HPC (D) had masterminded an ambush on Mizoram armed police near Sakerdai in northeast Mizoram in early September, killing six policemen.

Lalhmingthanga said the constituencies of Tuirial, Kolosib, Serlui and Tuivawl are likely targets of the HPC (D), whose cadres operate in the Hmar-Christian tribal inhabited areas in Manipur and Cachar district of Assam.

The Hmar rebels generally orchestrate their hit-and-run strikes in Mizoram from Manipur.

Lalhmingthanga said another “area of concern” was the northwest, where a number of Bru armed groups were active. These groups, police in Aizawl said, comprised the remnants of the Bru National Liberation Front and the Bru Liberation Front of Mizoram.

Most members of these outfits surrendered a few years ago. While 195 cadres of the BNLF laid down their arms in 2005, 53 in the BLFM followed suit the following year.

The Mizoram election office has asked for deployment of at least 15 companies of central paramilitary forces during the election.

Lalhmingthanga said the Union home ministry last week sent a communication to Aizawl asking the government to make do with its own forces, as a large number of troops were already deployed in other poll-bound states.

SECURING BORDERS

• Poll-bound Mizoram is taking extra care to secure the inter-state borders
• Assam, Tripura & Manipur sounded to increase security along the borders
• Mizoram apprehensive of strikes by Hmar and Zomi rebel groups ! Fear of violence by fundamentalist groups based in Bangladesh
• Fear of repeat of Tripura and Assam serial blasts
• Centre asks state to make its own security arrangements