GUWAHATI: Assam Police DGP, GP Singh, warned on Saturday that the banned militant group ULFA-I might launch an attack near the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border before Independence Day.
Singh, who has been monitoring security in Upper Assam for the past four days, said that intelligence reports suggest ULFA-I is planning something.
DGP Singh informed reporters that there is credible information about a ULFA-I unit being active along the state border and plotting to disrupt Independence Day celebrations.
The warning comes almost 20 years after a deadly bomb blast during an Independence Day parade in Dhemaji, Assam, in 2004. The remote-controlled explosion killed 18 people and injured many more.
In 2004, a bomb blast during an Independence Day parade at Dhemaji College in Assam killed at least 18 people and injured many more. The police said the bomb, placed near the college gate, was triggered remotely while teachers and children were passing through.
Seventy-seven years ago, when India gained independence, Assam celebrated with large festivities. The Polo Ground in Shillong, the old capital of Assam, was crowded with people who cheered as CM Gopinath Bordoloi raised the national flag. After Bordoloi did this, Governor Sir Akbari Hydari reviewed the parade.
As India gets ready for its 78th Independence Day, Khanapara in Guwahati is busy with preparations. The local administration and organizations are working hard to make the celebration special.
The Independence Day event at Khanapara will include flag hoisting, patriotic performances, and cultural programs highlighting the region's heritage and diversity. The organizers are focusing on seating, decorations, and security to ensure everything runs smoothly.
Officials stress the importance of community involvement and encourage residents to join the celebrations to honor India's journey to freedom. The events will also pay tribute to the freedom fighters and leaders who were key in India's struggle for independence.
Meanwhile, Separatist groups NSCN (Yung Aung) and ULFA (Independent) have jointly called for a boycott of India's Independence Day and a total shutdown on August 15 in Assam, Manipur, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh.
The gatherings encouraged "opportunity cherishing Wesean residents" to notice a total closure from 12 PM to 8:00 PM on Freedom Day, sticking to the trademark "One Individuals One District One Vision."
They explained that emergency services, media, and religious activities will be absolved from the closure.
In a joint public statement, the insurgent groups reprimanded India's Freedom Day as a "colonialist image" intended to delude the world and propagate the concealment of the Wesean locale's desires.
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