Guwahati: The Assam government will soon resume talks with neighbouring states to find a permanent solution to the long-pending inter-state boundary disputes, Border Areas Development Minister Atul Bora said on Wednesday.
Addressing the media, Bora said regional committees headed by ministers have already been constituted to hold discussions with their counterparts in Arunachal Pradesh. The committees are expected to begin negotiations shortly to resolve the remaining areas of dispute between the two states.
Bora also termed the recent firing incident involving miscreants from Arunachal Pradesh and Assamese villagers as unfortunate and urged the Arunachal Pradesh government to take strong action against those responsible. He said maintaining peace along the border must remain a priority while efforts continue to resolve the disputes through dialogue.
According to Bora, land-related disputes have continued since the reorganisation of states in the Northeast. He said considerable progress has been made in resolving the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh boundary issue following the Namsai Declaration. However, disputes remain in more than 52 villages.
The minister said the regional committees of both states would work towards addressing the unresolved issues and finding an acceptable solution through discussions.
On the Assam-Nagaland boundary dispute, Bora said the state government had approached the Supreme Court in 1998, and the case is still pending. Since the matter is sub judice, he said, it is difficult for the two governments to settle the dispute completely through negotiations.
At the same time, talks are continuing between Assam and Nagaland to maintain peace and prevent tensions in the border areas. Bora said the Chief Ministers of the two states have also held several rounds of discussions on the issue.
Regarding the Assam-Meghalaya boundary dispute, the minister said differences remain in 12 areas. Six of these have already been resolved, while discussions are underway to settle the remaining six.
Bora expressed confidence that the outstanding disputes with Meghalaya could also be resolved through continued negotiations.
He further said Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been keen on resolving the inter-state boundary disputes in the Northeast and that several rounds of discussions involving the neighbouring states have been held in the presence of representatives of the Union Home Ministry.
The Assam government, Bora said, remains committed to resolving the boundary disputes through dialogue and ensuring lasting peace along the state’s borders.