World War II-era mortar shells disposed of in Manipur’s Churachandpur district

PTI, Jun 14, 2020, 8:50 PM IST

Imphal: Two World War II-era mortar shells were disposed of in Manipur’s Churachandpur district on Sunday, around three months after they were found, police said.

Residents of Monglenphai-Tollen village had found one of the 50 mm mortar shells while digging a grave and the other while cleaning a nearby riverbank, they said.

“The discoveries were made around three months back but the villagers had failed to inform about those to the authorities concerned due to ignorance.

They had kept the mortar shells in the compound of the residence of a local person. However, when a social activist came to know about it, he informed the police on Sunday,” an officer said.

The area was cordoned off and a bomb disposal unit detonated the mortar shells in a nearby secluded area in a ‘controlled explosion,’ he said.

Several World War II-era explosives have been found in Manipur in the past. The state was witness to intense fighting between Allied troops and the Japanese Army aided by the Indian National Army (INA) in 1944.

The Japanese had retreated from Manipur after suffering heavy losses during four months of fighting in the state.