Assam insurgent groups sign final pact 14 years after giving up arms

Guwahati: Fourteen years after bididng farewell to arms, five insurgent groups in Assam on Sunday signed final agreements that promised to set up special development councils for Kuki and Hmar communities. 

The pacts were signed in Guwahati in the presence of Assam Education minister Ranoj Pegu, couple of hours before Election Commission announced the date for Assembly polls. 

The groups that signed the Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) are: United Kukigam Defence Army (UKDA), Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA), Kuki Liberation Organisation (KLO), Kuki Liberation Army (KLA) and Hmar People's Convention-Democratic (HPC-D).

The UKDA was formed in 2010 while the KRA came into being in 2000 in Karbi Anglong, a hilly district in central Assam. The KLO/ KLA were formed in 1992 and 1993 in neighbouring Dima Hasao district. HPC-D was formed by some Hmar youths in 2003/2004. The groups were involved in violent attacks with other communities as well as with the security forces before they were convinced to lay down weapons in 2012. 

"Both the MoS envisage formation of a Kuki Welfare and Development Council and a Hmar Welfare Development Council in Kuki and Hmar people dominated areas of Assam. There will be budget provisions for both the councils, which will be prepared by the councils as per their requirements and submitted to the Transformation and Development Department for the state government’s approval. The state government will also take steps for rehabilitation of the cadres of the armed groups as per existing procedure. Moreover the family members of the cadres who lost their lives during armed struggle will be provided financial compensation by the government," said a statement issued by Assam government.

Similar accords were signed with armed groups comprising youths from Bodo, Karbi, Adivasi, Dimasa communities as well as with Arabinda Rajkhowa-led group of Ulfa. More than 9,000 cadres laid down weapons and joined the mainstream. 

"With these two MoS, the ethnic militancy comes to an end in Assam," said the statement.