Meghalaya Forms Regional Committees To Address Border Disputes In 6 Areas

After signing a pact to resolve the inter-state border dispute with Assam in six out of 12 areas, the Meghalaya government on Monday constituted three regional committees to examine the present status of the remaining six areas of differences.

In a notification issued by the Home (Political) department, the Meghalaya government said that the three regional committees will examine the present status of the remaining six areas of differences in Langpih in the West Khasi Hills district; Borduar, Nongwah-Mawtamur, Deshdoomreah, Block-II in Ri-Bhoi district; Block-I, Psiar-Khanduli in West Jaintia Hills district. "Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong will be the Chairman of the Ri-Bhoi district regional committee while Minister Renikton L. Tongkhar will be the Chairman of West Khasi Hills district regional committee and Minister Sniawbhalang Dhar will lead the West Jaintia Hills district regional committee," read an official statement by the government.

The Deputy Commissioner of the respective districts will be the Member Convenor of the regional committees.

The regional committees constituted by the Meghalaya government will coordinate with the relevant regional committee set up by the Assam government.

These committees are set to cross-reference and verify the names of villages (sub-villages) claimed by Meghalaya with the names of villages as per records of the Assam government, to establish the geographical location of the villages and their contiguity, to examine the status of the population of villages as per census records including ethnicity.

The committees will also visit each of the villages, and interact with the communities living in the villages including the elected representatives of the Autonomous District Councils and other stakeholders to learn about the perception of the people living in the area, to document the factual information regarding the physical and time-wise distances from the villages to the nearest public service delivery point/ administrative unit.

"The Committees will submit their report to the Government of Meghalaya within a period of 45 days from the date of this notification based on the inspection of the villages and based on the agreed yardsticks of historical perspective, ethnicity of the local population, administrative convenience of local people, contiguity with the boundary and the perception of the people living in the area," the statement added.

On March 29, Assam Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma and his Meghalaya counterpart Conrad Sangma signed an agreement to end their five-decade-old border dispute in six of the 12 contested locations that often raised tensions between the two states in New Delhi in presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

(With Inputs from ANI)

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