GUWAHATI, Feb 23 - The 21 Mountain Division, also known as the Red Horns Division, is likely to be shifted from Rangiya to its earlier base in Meghalaya in the next one and half years, while two army battalions have already been withdrawn from Karbi Anglong as part of the government�s troop withdrawal plans from Assam where insurgency related incidents have registered a decline.
�The Indian Army battalions were withdrawn from Karbi Anglong two months back. The incidents which are taking place now are more of law-and-order in nature and not linked to insurgency. As such the civil administration and police can handle those,� defence sources told The Assam Tribune.
While no official decision has been taken yet, the Rangiya-based Red Horns Division � which was played a key role in the counterinsurgency operations in lower and central Assam since the 1980s � is likely to be withdrawn and shifted to its divisional headquarters at Umroi in Meghalaya, the sources said, adding that the relocation may take place in one and half year�s time.
�The withdrawal of the troops would also depend on how the Bodoland Territorial Region elections are held,� the sources added.
Currently, there are three army divisions in Assam � the 2nd Mountain Division based at Dinjan, the 71st Mountain Division based at Missamari and the Red Horns. A division in the Indian Army comprises around 16,000 combat troops besides over 5,000 support staff, including engineers, etc.
The 71st Mountain Division is not involved in counterinsurgency operations in the State, and most of its units are in Arunachal Pradesh. The Dinjan-based 2nd Mountain Division is responsible for operations in parts of upper Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland, and comes under the Dimapur-based 3 Corps.
�There is unlikely to be any further changes in deployment as the other two divisions are based in Assam. The other logistics and engineering support are also likely to remain in place,� the sources said.
The Red Horns Division is one of the oldest divisions of the Indian Army and was originally raised at Secunderabad on April 3 in 1943. Post Independence, it was rechristened as Red Horns Division of the Indian Army in July, 1977.
This Indian Army formation, which is under the operational command of the Tezpur-based 4 Corps, was tasked in combating insurgency in a major part of the State and has acquitted itself in Operation Falcon and Operation Rhino with aplomb. The Indian Army also played a crucial role in the counterinsurgency operations carried out in Bhutan, Bangladesh and of late in Myanmar.
While all the NDFB factions have come overground, the ULFA(I) is the only active rebel group now, mostly active in the districts of upper Assam.