OUR CORRESPONDENT
ITANAGAR: Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu announced that the state would, in principle, move towards creating a separate department dedicated to the Inner Line Permit (ILP) system to strengthen indigenous tribal rights and improve ILP enforcement.
The decision emerged during a high-level consultative meeting attended by student bodies, community-based organisations, legal experts, political parties and civil society groups to discuss issues related to indigenous rights and demands raised by the Arunachal Pradesh ST Bachao Andolan Committee (APSTBAC).
Khandu said the government had accepted all four demands raised by APSTBAC in principle, including stronger protection of indigenous rights, action against illegal migrants, strict implementation of the ILP system and opposition to Scheduled Tribe status for non-tribals.
He also said the government would act against illegal religious structures and had directed officials to compile a report on such structures across the state.
The meeting further decided to hold another high-level discussion on May 29 with representatives of stakeholder groups to prepare a future roadmap on the issues. Khandu appealed for peace and cooperation, stating that the government remained committed to protecting the identity and demographic security of indigenous communities.
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