GUWAHATI, July 25 ? The six-month ceasefire agreement between the Garo militant outfit Achik National Volunteer Council (ANVC) and the Centre could prove to be handy for the security forces in Assam fighting the ULFA and the NDFB. Security sources here said that the end of hostilities with the outfit could effectively put an end to the movement of NDFB and ULFA cadres from Bangladesh to Assam through the Garo Hills districts of Meghalaya.
The high-level sources, while refusing to be identified, said that there is an air of optimism in the security apparatus in Assam following the ceasefire agreement entered into by the ANVC. The optimism stems from the fact that ULFA and NDFB militants would now find it extremely hard to use the Garo Hills route for the cross-border activities. With the guns falling silent, the forces will now be able to launch a sustained campaign against the two Assam outfits who have a significant presence in the Garo Hills.
Both the ULFA and the NDFB have set up extensive facilities in the three Garo Hills districts to be used as launching pads for offensive operations in Assam. The two outfits have always used the Garo Hills for their activities, though in a minor way. But since this year the area has become strategically very important for both these outfits following their expulsion from Bhutanese territory. A large number of camps and storage sites have been created here.
According to the sources, with the closure of virtually all their camps and shelters in Bhutan, both the ULFA and the NDFB have found the Garo Hills a convenient transit route for their movements to and from Bangladesh. In fact, the Garo Hills have become the virtual lifeline for these two outfits. It is through this that arms and money from their Bangladeshi headquarters are funnelled into the hands of the militant cadres to carry out their activities. The ULFA and NDFB had also set up some forward camps in the dense forests here. ULFA commander Lal Deka was entrusted the responsibility of overseeing the maintenance of the militant infrastructure.
Till the ceasefire agreement was signed, the ANVC has been acting as the overlord of the militant groups active in the Garo Hills. The ULFA and the NDFB carried out their activities here with the ?permission? of the ANVC, the sources asserted. Of course, relations between the ANVC and the NDFB had been strained for the past several months over a financial dispute. Despite that, the ANVC tolerated the NDFB. It is the ANVC, the sources said, which sustained the ULFA and NDFB in Garo Hills, providing them logistical support.
With the ANVC cadres now retreating into designated camps, the Assam militant outfits would suddenly find the going tough. For one, the sources disclosed, the Assam militants are still quite unfamiliar with the jungle terrain and need local guides. It would be hard to come by now. Moreover, the support of the local people would also no longer be available since the ANVC has gone out of the picture. As it is, the ULFA and NDFB cadres are still looked upon as outsiders by the common people in Garo Hills, the sources asserted.
Hopes of the NDFB entering into a ceasefire agreement has also brightened, the sources assessed. The lead taken by the ANVC might prompt the NDFB leadership to follow suit since the outfit is already struggling to come to terms with the setback it suffered in Bhutan.