From Our Correspondent
NONGSTOIN: KP Pangniang, MDC of Rambrai Jyrngam Constituency, and Chairman of the ‘fact finding committee on Assam-Meghalaya inter-state border issue’ has asked to all the Syiem, Nokma and Sordar living along the border areas to register their land with the KHADC since non-registration of land by the owners paves way for encroachment in Meghalaya land by the Assam Government.
Pangniang, on Wednesday, informed The Shillong Times that he was surprised to know that most of the land in the Assam-Meghalaya border areas had not been registered either with the office of the Deputy Commissioner concerned or the District Council, especially the land of the Garo Communities who have no documents to prove that the land belongs to them.
“More than 80 per cent of the border population consists of people from the Garo community who inhabit villages like Malangkona, Moikhuli, Pilingkata and Khanapara. These people have not got their lands registered,” Pangniang said.
The MDC also made a fervent appeal to all the Nokma and Syiem in the border areas to allow the Garo community to register their lands or issue them patta at the earliest.
“Once the land had been registered with the Government or the District Council, the issue of illegal encroachment by Assam can be prevented once and for all,” he said.
Pangniang also informed that there were cases when the traditional heads of both Khasi and Garo communities did not allow land owners to get their land registered but the Assam Government would willingly issue land patta to the applicants even though the land belongs to Meghalaya.
Pangniang also urged the Khasi and Garo communities residing in border areas like Malangkona, Umshak, Athiabari, Komphoduli, Khyrshai, Jirang and Khanapara to proceed with the process of getting their land registered from the concerned department or collect patta from the traditional heads of their respective villages.