Areas under AFSPA in Assam, Nagaland, Manipur reduced

The central government has decided to reduce the disturbed areas under the ambit of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in Nagaland, Assam and Manipur after decades. Fro April 1, the disturbed area notification will be removed from 15 police stations in seven districts in Nagaland, the Centre said. 23 districts of Assam will be completely removed and one partially removed from the effect of AFSPA from tomorrow. In Manipur, 15 police station areas of six districts will be excluded from the disturbed area notification. Home Minister Amit Shah said that the reduction in areas under AFSPA is a result of the "improved security situation and fast-tracked development due to the consistent efforts and several agreements to end insurgency and bring lasting peace in the northeast by PM Narendra Modi".

Reduction in areas under AFSPA is a result of the improved security situation and fast-tracked development due to the consistent efforts and several agreements to end insurgency and bring lasting peace in North East by PM @narendramodi government.

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) March 31, 2022

He said: "Our Northeastern region, which was neglected for decades, is now witnessing a new era of peace, prosperity and unprecedented development." “The disturbed area notification under AFSPA was completely removed from Tripura in 2015 and Meghalaya in 2018 due to the improvement in the security situation by the Modi government.”

Thanks to PM @NarendraModi Ji’s unwavering commitment, our North-Eastern region, which was neglected for decades is now witnessing a new era of peace, prosperity and unprecedented development.

I congratulate the people of North East on this momentous occassion.

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) March 31, 2022

The government has maintained that insurgency has come down in the north east in the past seven years under the Bharatiya Janata Party rule at the Centre. According to data available on the home ministry’s website, insurgence related incidents have come down from 1,749 in 1999 to only 209 in 2021 in the entire north-eastern region. Moreover, 2020 recorded the lowest incidents of insurgency in the last two decades. Compared to 2014, there has been a 75% reduction in insurgency in 2021.Similarly, in the same period, casualties at the hands of security forces have come down by 75%, while civilian deaths have dropped by 89%.

Initially, the AFSPA was imposed in insurgency-affected areas of the hills of undivided Assam that were identified as “disturbed areas”. Nagaland Hills were among those areas. Later on, all seven states in the Northeast were brought under the AFSPA. The controversial AFSPA law empowers security forces to conduct operations anywhere and arrest anyone without any prior warrant. It also gives a certain level of immunity to the security forces in case of an operation going wrong.