Creation of districts: Manipur govt to present cancellation demand proposal in next round of talks

The United Naga Council (UNC), the apex body of Naga tribes in Manipur, is against formation of the new districts, asserting that those districts encroached upon the ancestral land of the Nagas.

Imphal: The Manipur government said at a tripartite meeting on Thursday that it will present a proposal on the demand for cancellation of the 2016 decision to form seven new districts in the next round of talks, according to a statement.

Those districts were created by the then Congress government led by O Ibobi Singh amid opposition from the United Naga Council (UNC), the apex body of Naga tribes in Manipur.

The UNC is against formation of the new districts, asserting that those districts encroached upon the ancestral land of the Nagas. Talks were being held on their demands.

Representatives of the Centre, Manipur government and the UNC held a fresh round of meeting in Senapati district during the day.

"The discussions focused on the creation of seven new districts by the government of Manipur in December 2016 and UNC's demand for its rollback.

“After threadbare discussions, it was mutually agreed that a proposal will be presented by representatives of the state government in the next tripartite meeting which will be held in April 2025," said a joint statement.

It was signed by Commissioner (Home) N Ashok Kumar for the Manipur government, Advisor NE at the Ministry of Home Affairs AK Mishra and UNC president Ng Lorho.

The meeting was also attended by presidents of All Naga Students Association and Naga Women's Union.

The last round of tripartite talks, held in November last year, did not yield any result.

"Representatives of the government of Manipur expressed inability to present a concrete proposal in view of certain difficulties. However, UNC expressed strong exceptions over non-submission of a concrete proposal and insisted that it be submitted in the next rounds of talks," according to a statement issued then.

Those seven new districts were formed by dividing the total nine existed at that time. The Congress government had then said that the move was aimed at administrative convenience.