Assam and Meghalaya decided to end their five-decade-old border dispute in six of the 12 contested locations that often-raised tensions between the two states by signing an agreement in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
The home minister said, with the signing of the agreement, 70 per cent of the border dispute between the two states has been resolved and hoped that a solution will be found for the remaining six locations soon.
So, what was the border dispute between the two states and how is the new agreement going to affect the people of that area?
The border dispute
Assam shares a 2743 km boundary with Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and West Bengal. It is locked in border disputes with Nagaland, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh.
In July 2021, Assam's Cachar district had witnessed a fierce armed clash between the police personnel of Assam and Mizoram. Six Assam police personnel were killed in an armed confrontation with their Mizoram counterparts, forcing the Centre to intervene.
However, the long-standing dispute between the two states began in 1972 when Meghalaya was separated from Assam under the Assam Reorganisation Act, 1971. Since then, 12 areas of difference evolved between them which both the states claimed to be theirs, they were: Upper Tarabari, Gazang reserve forest, Hahim, Langpih, Borduar, Boklapara, Nongwah, Matamur, Khanapara-Pilangkata, Deshdemoreah Block I and Block II, Khanduli and Retacherra.
Efforts made to resolve the dispute
In 1985, an official committee was formed to resolve the issue under the then Assam chief minister Hiteshwar Saikia and Meghalaya CM Captain W A Sangma. However, a solution didn’t come up.
According to a senior official in the Assam government, the vital difference between the efforts made by this government and the previous one was that the problem had now been "broken down to chewable bits", and the "low-hanging fruits had been identified first", reported The Indian Express.
Under the Modi govt, the two states had formed three committees each in August last year to go into the vexed boundary question. The constitution of the panels had followed two rounds of talks between Sarma and Sangma where the neighbouring states resolved to settle the dispute in a phased manner.
“A roadmap for amicable settlement has been prepared based on recommendations of 3 Regional Committees with representatives from both the states.” Sarma had informed in a tweet.
According to the joint final set of recommendations made by the committees, out of 36.79 sq km of the disputed area taken up for settlement in the first phase, Assam will get full control of 18.51 sq km and Meghalaya 18.28 sq km.
Out of the 12 points of dispute between Assam and Meghalaya, the six areas with relatively less critical differences were taken up in the first phase.
What will happen next?
The Survey of India will delineate and demarcate the discussed boundaries in the presence of the representatives of both states. It will then be put up for the Parliament’s approval and will likely take a few months.
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