Guwahati, Dec. 2: One was abducted and forced to join a militant outfit, while another took up guns at the behest of village elders. Yet another became an orphan while the fourth somehow saved himself from rioters and lived in a relief camp for eight months.

These four case studies (see chart) are among the many stories of death, torture and distress children are facing in four conflict-hit districts in Assam and Manipur, according to a recent study by the Northeast Research and Social Work Networking (NERSWN), an NGO based in Assam’s Kokrajhar district.

The study — Impact of Conflict on Children in Assam and Manipur — was conducted in Kokrajhar and Chirang districts in Assam and Imphal West and Tamenglong districts in Manipur. It found that children were being forced to join militant outfits, arrested by security forces on charges of being rebels, taking up arms out of curiosity or had lost their parents in insurgent attacks and were displaced.

The study found minors were exposed to post-conflict trauma and many were falling prey to child traffickers — in violation of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Act, 2000 and the United Nations Convention on Child Rights. It found that frequent strikes, protests and agitation left schools shut, thereby seriously affecting their education.

“The forced recruitment of children into insurgent groups has become a common phenomenon in Manipur. The researcher has come across many instances where respondents have mentioned incidents in which family members are threatened of dire consequences if they do not allow their children to join the outfits. Poor economic condition is one of the reasons of children joining rebel groups,” the report said.

Citing a report from Manipur Alliance for Child Rights, the report said 100 of the 147 children living in an observation home in Churachandpur district were found to be involved in insurgency.

With an increasing number of broken families owing to alcoholism, drug addiction and forced separation, it was found the children were left with no option but to join militant groups looking for fresh recruits. “Children were caught in gun battles between two militant groups or with security forces. In one such encounter on November 12, 2013, between NSCN (I-M) and Zeliangrong United Front, another group in Tamenglong district, three persons were killed, one of them a child soldier. Many have become orphans but (these facts) are not known owing to lack of proper documentation,” it said. Another cause for concern has been the “fake surrender ceremonies” organised by security forces which many children are lured to attend.

Like in Manipur, many children interviewed in Assam’s Kokrajhar and Chirang districts revealed the recruitment of children by different outfits and largescale displacement, particularly of children, during ethnic conflicts in 1993, 1996, 1998, 2012 and this year. “Over 3.14 lakh people were internally displaced in Kokrajhar district alone in 1996 and 1998. They spent over three years in relief camps. More than 1.26 lakh children were forced to live in camps in pathetic condition for more than 15 years. The clash in 2012 that affected Kokrajhar, Chirang, Dhubri and Bongaigaon districts left over 4.85 lakh people displaced,” the report said.

Twenty-six of the 45 people killed in Kokrajhar and Baksa in May this year by suspected NDFB (S) rebels were minors.

“We must accept the fact that conflict increases the vulnerability of children. There is a need to create a sustainable protective mechanism to ensure that those who have already fallen victim are supported and preventive measures taken to protect others,” the executive director of the NGO, Raju Kumar Narzary, told The Telegraph today.