From Our Correspondent
JOWAI: The Jaintia Students’ Union (JSU) and the Karbi Students’ Association (KSA) on Monday conducted a joint inspection at Khanduli area along the inter-state border between Jaintia Hills and Karbi-Anglong districts.
The joint inspection team led by KSA president Bidya Sing Teron and JSU president Elnathan Pale also included Rangbah Shnong of Khanduli and Goanbura (headmen) of Karbi Anglong districtof Assam.
The team inspected pillars put up along the border areas at Tahpat, Lakharoi and other villages and later held a meeting with headmen of the bordering villages at the Assam Forest Inspection Bungalow at Zero Point.
“We inspected some of the pillars, but we are not sure about their usage. We will seek clarification from both the governments about these pillars,” Pale said.
While urging villagers not to destroy the pillars the KSA president reiterated that it was important for both the Pnar and Karbi communities to maintain peace and harmony in the border areas.
Both the KSA and the JSU along with headmen of border villages have resolved to pressurize the two state government to solve the border dispute at the earliest.
Following the meeting, the Border Joint Action Committee (BJAC), Jaintia & Karbi (J&K) was constituted with the JSU president and KSA president as conveners 10 headmen from each community as members.
The village headmen of both the communities expressed happiness over the initiatives taken by the students’ bodies to bringing the two communities together and ensuring that any difference that may arise in the near future could be settled amicably.
Khanduli Rangbah Shnong, W Suchiang, said, “Both the communities used to support each other socially and economically. Our Pnar people used to work for Karbi people in times of sowing and harvesting and Karbi people too used to come to work in our paddy fields and there were no differences among us.”