At least 30 handmade IEDs were today recovered from several village roads in Meghalaya's East Garo Hills district, which is considered to be stronghold of the outlawed Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA) militants.
IG (Operations) GHP Raju said acting on inputs received from villagers a special operation was launched to recover and diffuse these IEDs.
All the IEDs were handmade and assembled by GNLA cadres with the help of ULFA(I) under Dristi Rajkhowa. They all have adequate explosive powers and could cause serious damage if they are to explode, he said.
Police have advanced into these areas and had a fierce exchange of fire with the GNLA cadres who ran away and left behind the IEDs, he said.
Today's recovery was the biggest explosives haul made by the state police in the Garo Hills region.
Earlier in the day, Rupanto, the self-styled deputy 'commader-n-chief' of GNLA made a narrow escape in an encounter with the police in Durama hills range where the villages were located, Raju said.
