Imphal, January 04 01 2010: With killing of two suspected PULF militants, security forces in state opened its counter insurgency operations for the year 2010.Weapons were also recovered in an operation at Karongthel Makha near Heirok bridge under Thoubal police in the wee hours today.

A combined force of Thoubal police commandos and troops of 34 Assam Rifles who acted on specific information of movement of armed cadres of PULF from the general area of Leiching Minou village towards Phundrei gunned down the two suspects in a shoot-out at about 2.40 am today at general area of the Karongthel Makha near the Heirok bridge, a statement of the senior SP, Thoubal police, Clay Khongsai claimed.

When the combined force approached the location, at abour 4.35 am, they were fired upon heavily at Karongthel with automatic weapons.

The security force returned fire immediately resulting in the killing of two of them.

The exchange of fire lasted for about 15 minutes, the statement added.

An AK-47 series rifles with two magazines, one 9 mm pistol with two magazines of 9 mm pistol, one .36 hand grenade, 22 live rounds of AK ammunitions, six live rounds of 9 mm pistol and a demand letter of PULF outfit was recovered from the possession of the deceased.

Today's incident of killing two suspected underground is the first militancy related fatalities in state in this New Year, 2010 .

Last year, at least 415 people killed during the year 2009 till December 28 in militancy related fatalities while over 900 cadres of different insurgent outfits were apprehended.

With the 415 people killed last year 2009, as many as 5536 people have lost their lives in insurgency related fatalities since 1992 in Manipur.

Out of them 2473 were insurgents of different underground groups, 2127 are civilians while the rest 936 are security men of both state and central security force establishments.