SHILLONG, Jan 7: Terming the unresolved interstate boundary issue between Meghalaya and Assam as a “huge embarrassment” for the state which is gearing up to celebrate its golden jubilee next year, the Hynniewtrep Youth Council (HYC) has urged the state government to move to resolve the dispute before January, 2022.
“Meghalaya is gearing up to celebrate 50 years of statehood but even today we do not have our own map. It is nothing short of embarrassment since anyone attempting to draw the map of Meghalaya will be confused whether to include Block-1 and II or Langpih in the map or not,” HYC president Robert Kharjahrin said.
Pointing out the seriousness of the matter, Kharjahrin said, “We want this issue to be taken up seriously by the state government and we would also like the opposition to give their constructive suggestions.”
Asserting that the situation along the Meghalaya-Assam border was more complicated than the international boundary between Meghalaya and Bangladesh, the HYC leader said that the Centre has left it to the two neighbours to settle the matter amicably and the Meghalaya government should make a move to find a lasting solution.
“The boundary dispute is an issue which the people of Meghalaya really want to be resolved once and for all and we are going to push for it this year,” he added.
Bangla land swap deal irks HYC
The Centre’s decision to go ahead with the India-Bangladesh land swap deal of 2015 has upset the HYC.
“We are not happy with the 100th amendment of the Constitution of India and the land swap deal struck between India and Bangladesh. We will take it up soon,” Kharjahrin said.
The Constitution’s 100th amendment deals with the boundaries of the two countries. The pressure groups, which stand opposed to the deal, have for long been demanding that Meghalaya be exempted from it.
The Constitution (119th Amendment) Bill, which will operationalise the 1974 Land Boundary Agreement between India and Bangladesh and facilitate exchange of territory, was approved by the Union Cabinet and unanimously passed by the Rajya Sabha.
Territories in Assam, West Bengal, Tripura and Meghalaya come under the Bill’s purview. The legislation will allow exchange of enclaves and retention of land in adverse possessions in these states.