New Delhi: The Union government on Saturday, June 10, constituted a Peace Committee in Manipur to facilitate a peace-making process among various ethnic groups in the violence-hit northeastern state, news agency PTI reported.With state governor Anusuiya Uike as its head, the committee will have the chief minister, a few state ministers, MPs, MLAs, and leaders from various political parties as its members. It will also have among its representatives former civil servants, educationists, littérateurs, artists, social workers, and representatives of different ethnic groups, a statement issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said.“The mandate of the committee will be to facilitate a peace-making process among various ethnic groups of the state, including peaceful dialogue and negotiations between conflicting parties/groups. The committee should strengthen social cohesiveness, mutual understanding and facilitate cordial communication between various ethnic groups,” the statement added.The constitution of the committee comes a day after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had set up a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the recent ethnic violence that rocked the state. On Friday, June 9, the CBI had re-registered six FIRs pertaining to incidents of large-scale violence leading to destruction and looting of properties, arson, looting/snatching of arms/ammunition, loss of human lives, etc., in various districts of Manipur. The SIT will be headed by a DIG rank officer and will have 10 officers as its members.During his visit to the state last week, Union home minister Amit Shah had announced the CBI probe as well as the constitution of a peace-making committee.Violence hit the northeastern state after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts on May 3 to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. About 100 people lost their lives in the resulting violence, and several people were displaced.According to an official statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), the number of injured stands at 310, and the number of arson cases at 4,104. A total of 3,734 FIRs have been registered, with Imphal West district registering the highest number of FIRs at 1,257, followed by 932 FIRs in Kangpokpi, and 844 in Bishnupur, the statement added.