Assam, Meghalaya CMs discuss interstate border disputes

The chief ministers of Assam and Meghalaya held a meeting on Wednesday to resolve the interstate dispute in the remaining six areas along the 884.9 km border of the two states. The CMs will visit Karbi Anglong, where unrest is continuing, in the latter half of June as part of confidence-building measures.

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma and his Meghalaya counterpart Conrad K Sangma had signed a memorandum of understanding on March 29 last year in the presence of Union home minister Amit Shah, “resolving” six of the 12 disputed areas. “We will visit the areas of West Jaintia Hills and Karbi Anglong in June. Some tension is prevailing there. We will appeal for peace. We will assure people that through a process, we will arrive at solutions,” Sarma said.

Sangma said this is the beginning of the process to find solutions for the remaining six areas. “We have asked regional committees to embark on factfinding and start the same process as was done for the first phase of talks. We will consult with stakeholders. We hope to get the reports soon. Some areas may take time, some will be faster.”