The 50-year-old Assam-Meghalaya border dispute and the ‘historic’ agreement that aims to resolve it

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and his Meghalaya counterpart Conrad Sangma on Tuesday signed an settlement to resolve the 50-year-old boundary dispute between the 2 northeastern states.

The settlement was signed within the presence of Union Residence Minister Amit Shah, different officers from the Ministry of Residence Affairs, and the chief secretaries of each states.

Shah tweeted a ‘stay’ video of the signing, calling it a “historic day for the North-east”.

The 2 states share a 885-km-long border and the dispute has been ongoing for many years. What’s the struggle about? And the way did Assam and Meghalaya attain an settlement? We clarify.

Reaching an settlement

The Assam-Meghalaya border witnesses common flare-ups. There are 12 areas of dispute between the 2 states and in August final 12 months Sarma and Sangma agreed that six could be chosen for a decision within the first section.

The governments of each the states ready a draft decision, which was submitted to Amit Shah earlier this month, after an approval from the Assam and Meghalaya cupboards.

In response to the suggestions for the 36.79 sq. km of land, Assam will maintain 18.51 sq. km and 18.28 sq. km would go to Meghalaya.

How the 2 states arrived at an settlement

Meghalaya cupboard minister Renikton Lyngdoh Tongkhar advised ThePrint final week that “5 rules”, together with the need of the folks dwelling within the disputed areas, had been thought of to resolve which space would fall by which state.

The governments of Assam and Meghalaya arrange regional committees headed by cupboard ministers from the 2 states to check these areas. The committees adopted a “five-phase method”, which included the alternate of information, joint area visits, detailed deliberations, negotiations, after which ready the ultimate suggestions. In every of the areas, the committees would bear in mind the composition of the native inhabitants, reviews ThePrint.

What opposition leaders should say

After the joint proposal by the 2 states to signal the settlement final week, opposition events in Assam termed the transfer “unconstitutional” and stated it successfully meant “sacrificing land” to the neighbouring hill state.

Chief of Opposition Debabrata Saikia of the Congress alleged that Sarma had gone forward and submitted a proposal to Amit Shah “with out even a dialogue within the state Meeting”.

The historical past of the dispute

The dispute between Assam and Meghalaya began within the early Seventies. Meghalaya was carved out of Assam below the Assam Reorganisation Act, 1971, a legislation that the newly shaped state challenged. The separate state was shaped a 12 months later, in 1972.

The border row began due to totally different understanding of the demarcation of boundaries within the preliminary settlement.

That are the disputed areas?

The disputed border areas are Higher Tarabari, Gazang reserve forest, Hahim, Langpih, Borduar, Boklapara, Nongwah, Matamur, Khanapara-Pilangkata, Deshdemoreah Block I and Block II, Khanduli and Retacherra.

The six areas on which settlement has been reached within the first section are reportedly Tarabari, Gijang, Hahim, Baklapara, Khanapara-Pilingkata, and Ratacherra.

Nonetheless, the most-contested area stays Langpih.

The village is on the border of Assam’s Kamrup district and Meghalaya’s West Khasi district. The British clubbed the village with Kamrup district, however after Independence it was reportedly handed over to United Khasi and Jaintia Hills district, which is a part of Meghalaya. Because the formation of Meghalaya within the early Seventies, each states have made contesting claims on the precise demarcation of the village, based on a report in The Indian Specific.

Langpih is just not a part of the websites which have been named in Tuesday’s settlement, however in November 2021 each Sarma and Sangma visited the village.

“Folks dwelling on the disputed border areas have suffered immensely over the past 50 years and protecting this in view, each the governments have come ahead to settle the problem by means of dialogue,” Sangma had stated throughout the go to.

Previous clashes and controversies

In August 2021, stress erupted between each the states as soon as once more. An Assam police officer allegedly misbehaved with two males from Meghalaya in Umlapher space in Assam’s West Karbi Anglong district. Quickly after, crowds gathered on
either side of the border and a Meghalaya officer was injured whereas managing it.

The state of affairs intensified after Meghalaya residents reportedly tried to cross into Assam close to Umlapher. When police officers from Karbi Anglong tried to regulate the mob, it led to a face-off between safety officers of each states.

There was yet one more row involving former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi’s authorities visitor home. Situated on a small hillock in Khanapara-Pilangakata block, it was usually claimed by Meghalaya as a part of its territory, reviews India In the present day.

Border disputes with different states

Meghalaya is just not the one state that has a border dispute with Assam. Clashes with different states carved out of Assam – Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland – are frequent.

Between 1979 and 2021, border disputes led to 157 deaths. At the very least 361 individuals had been injured and greater than 65,729 have been displaced, based on the Rights & Dangers Evaluation Group, a New Delhi-based think-tank.

Out of the 157 reported deaths, the utmost variety of deaths happened within the Assam-Nagaland border dispute with 136 deaths, adopted by the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border dispute with 10 deaths, the Assam-Mizoram border dispute with seven deaths, and the Assam-Meghalaya border dispute with 4 deaths.

Tuesday’s decision then is a step in the proper course.

The Meghalaya chief minister stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah pushed for the variations between the 2 states to be resolved. “If India and Bangladesh can resolve the border points then why can’t states additionally, that is the stand they took,” stated Sangma.

That is, nevertheless, the start. The matter is just not utterly resolved. The 2 states have to return to an settlement on six extra areas of dispute. “Additional, a survey might be completed by the Survey of India with each states’ involvement, and when that’s completed, precise demarcation will happen,” Sangma advised ANI.

With inputs from companies

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