Guwahati: Two more bodies have been recovered from violence-hit Assam-Nagaland border on Sunday with the toll rising to nine in the violence. “Two more bodies were recovered today taking the toll to nine and all were victims of the first day violence of August 12 in Uriamghat area,” Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) A P Rout told PTI.
“Earlier, it was reported that eleven bodies were recovered from the spot till August 15 but later it was found to be seven,” he said. “It happened due to dual calculation at the village and again by their relatives. The two bodies were recovered from Chainpur village in Golaghat district today (Sunday),” Rout said.
Assam Home and Political Commissioner and Secretary Gyanendra Dev Tripathi said, “After police reached the spot, it was found that seven and not eleven bodies were found till August 15. The number of injured has also increased to seven from three.” “The situation is currently stable. People in relief camps have visited their homes and are expected to move to their houses in a day or two. Moreover, the number of inmates in relief camps has come down to 9,300 from around 10,000,” Tripathi said.
He, however, said the night curfew from 6 pm to 6 am in the area along the inter-state border will continue in order to avoid any untoward development. “Assam Police along with CRPF have set up 18 pickets in the area. They facilitate return of the people, whose houses have not burnt,” he said.
Tripathi further said the government has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 8 lakh each to the families of persons killed in the violence, while it will be Rs 50,000 to those injured.
“The government will also give a grant of Rs 50,000 to every family, whose houses were burnt. We are conducting the survey on the number of houses. It will be between 200-300,” he added.
On Saturday, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene in restoring peace in the area.
Gogoi had blamed the neutral force CRPF as “whatever protection CRPF should have given, they could not give”.
Around 200 houses of around 1,000 people were set on fire. In total, over 10,000 people have left their homes and are living in 10 relief camps opened in the area.
Seven villages, including Chetiagaon, Romanbasti, Chainpur, Ratanpur, Kamphur and Sukhanjan falling under Sector B of the Assam-Nagaland border, have been affected.
The administration has opened a central control room, comprising Assam Police, Nagaland Police and CRPF.
The violence took place when angry locals were protesting in front of 155 CRPF battalion office at Chetiagaon village in Golaghat district on August 12 against the abduction of two boys by suspected miscreants from Nagaland.
CRPF personnel unable to control the agitators resorted to baton charge to disperse them and at the same time the miscreants fired from across the border. Since 1979, Assam-Nagaland border is divided into six sectors — A, B, C, D, E and F — falling under Sibsagar, Jorhat, Golaghat and Karbi Anglong districts.
The police of both the states cannot be present there but normal day-to-day security is given by a “neutral force”.
In 1988, the Assam government had filed a case in the Supreme Court, which formed a Mediation Committee to give a report on the disputed land. It has submitted the report. (PTI)