Guwahati, Jun 6 (IANS): The North East Indigenous Peoples' Forum (NEIPF) has called upon the Union and state governments to step in and protect citizens amid the ethnic violence in Manipur.

The NEIPF executive meeting took place at Assam Sahitya Sabha Bhavan in Guwahati on Tuesday.

The forum also offered a prayer and hoped for peaceful and harmonious co-existence among all the communities in Manipur.

"We urge the Union and state governments to immediately intervene and ensure the safety of all the people in Manipur. We also urge that the vehicles in the region be safeguarded, particularly on the National Highways," the NEIPF said in a statement.

The NEIPF asked the government to address the daily needs of the displaced people by providing them with basic amenities, and also appealed to all the communities not to resort to any form of blockades and counter-blockades of roads.

The NEIPF also said that the Union government should probe if there is any involvement of foreign nationals in the present crisis.

"Appropriate actions should be initiated if foreign nationals are involved in the present crisis in Manipur," the NEIPF said.

The forum said that the gradual infiltration of illegal foreign nationals in the region, which has changed the demography of the states, calls for prompt action by the government.

"The continuous haul of narcotics and massive destruction of forests in the region is a matter of serious concern. It has to be defined whether narco-terrorism is linked to the mass deforestation of poppy plantations in the northeastern states, including Manipur, to save the indigenous people," the NEIPF said.

The forum also asked all the indigenous peoples of the region to be attentive and build a mechanism to regulate the settlements of foreigners since they deny economic progress of the indigenous people.