TURA, August 17: Combined organizations from Garo Hills under the umbrella of the All Garo Hills Joint Action Committee (AGHJAC) recently met Deputy Speaker of Assam Assembly , Dr Numal Momin and submitted a memorandum with the demand for the creation of the Garo Autonomous Council (GAC) in place of the Garo Development Council (GDC) which was provided by the Assam Government earlier.
Leaders from Garo Hills including AGHJAC Adviser Roger Benny A Sangma, Convenor Balkarin Ch Marak, GSU CEC (Interim) President Zikku Balgra N Marak besides other zone and unit leaders of the GSU, GSMC and FAF met Momin at his official residence in Guwahati and handed over the memorandum with the demand.
During the discussion that followed, the delegation raised pertinent issues related to Garos in Assam and urged the Deputy Speaker to look into the creation of the Garo Autonomous Council (GAC) for the resident Garo Community.
According to the leaders, Momin is said to have responded positively assuring that they were entitled to the GAC which will cover all the Garo villages in Assam so that they get overall development. Momin is also said to have expressed concern over the plight of the Garos and assured that he would work hard to up-lift them and take up the matter with party leaders.
Other issues raised by the delegation included the frequent border dispute in Garo Hills villages with Assam and the Job Reservation for Garos in Assam.