New Delhi, March 20 (IANS) The Northeastern states have always been on the radar of external elements. This explains why insurgency lasted so long in the region. And now, some militant groups are trying to launch drone strikes targeting critical infrastructure in the region.

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi government since 2014 has laid plenty of emphasis on the northeastern states and showered it with infrastructure development and inclusion.

While a large part of the Northeast has embraced these moves, there are external elements who are hell-bent on reviving insurgency, an Intelligence Bureau official revealed.

Myanmar remains a major headache for India. While Myanmar has been used by insurgent groups as a training ground, now the Indian security agencies are dealing with a massive problem of drones.

Many insurgent groups are now trying to launch drone strikes targeting oil refineries, military infrastructure, dams and other critical infrastructure for the northeastern states.

In particular, infrastructure that has been set up since 2014 has become the primary target of these groups who have the backing of external elements.

The drones are in fact becoming a major worry as there are plenty of drones which are ready to be launched from Myanmar into the northeastern states, officials say.

In recent months, banned insurgent groups such as ULFA, NSCN, and Kuki Zo-aligned outfits have gained access to not just expertise, but even technology.

These groups, with the help of external support, have managed to build capabilities and are capable of carrying out precision strikes in the northeastern states.

In addition to infrastructure, on the hit list of these groups are the Assam Rifles and Army posts near the Manipur-Myanmar border.

They also have on their radar the Indian Air Force (IAF) bases at Tezpur and Chabua. Officials say that the idea is to target these assets with the drones that they have managed to accumulate over the last many months.

More details on these operations are emerging following the arrest of seven foreign nationals which includes six Ukrainians and an American. They have been accused of being involved in a proxy destabilisation plot. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing this case.

The agency has so far learned that these people were allegedly equipping and training armed ethnic groups across the India-Myanmar border. All these groups have links with the insurgents operating in the northeastern states.

This is not just a run-of-the-mill warfare that these elements are planning. They are using sophisticated equipment and plan on targeting high value infrastructure.

The NIA will also look at the violence that engulfed Manipur in 2024. There were inputs about foreign hands being involved in such actions with the intention of destabilising Manipur.

Even during that time, the agencies found that the Kuki militants had used sophisticated equipment. Drones were used to drop 40 bombs in Imphal West, which led to several civilians losing their lives.

The PLA insurgent group, too, had used drones to carry out an attack on a temporary base set up by the Assam Rifles.

Another official said that the intention is not just to disrupt peace. The idea is to carry out strikes on infrastructure, that could completely derail development.

Intelligence inputs suggest that these insurgent groups have on their radar, ONGC oilfields in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

Any precision hit on these oilfields would lead to massive economic disruption.

These groups are also looking to hit hydroelectric projects in Manipur and Mizoram.

Hitting such projects not only creates a flood risk, but will also trigger blackouts. Officials say that the recent arrests were made in the nick of time. More details will emerge as investigations progress.

It is important for the NIA to find out the entire plan, so that work on dismantling such terror infrastructure could take place, the official also added.

--IANS

vn/rad