SHILLONG, Jan 27: Assam and Meghalaya have almost come to an understanding regarding the six disputed areas for which negotiations between two states started last year.
Speaking to media persons here on Thursday after the Cabinet meeting, Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma said the Cabinet has decided to iron out the few final issues pending with Assam.
Stating that the Meghalaya government would again have a meeting with Assam in the next few days to straighten out these issues, he said both the states have come to an almost 98% agreement on the six “less complicated” areas identified for resolving first.
“We should be able to reach a full understanding in the next meeting,” he said, adding that Union Home Minister Amit Shah will call the representatives of both the states for a joint meeting on the matter soon and settle the dispute in these six areas.
Shah may call both states for discussions either by the end of January or the early part of February.
The six areas of differences targeted for resolving are Tarabari, Gizang and Hahim in West Khasi Hills, Boklapara and Khanapara-Pillangkata in Ri-Bhoi and Ratacherra in the East Jaintia Hills district.
On the objections raised by Congress, Sangma said the grand old party had the opportunity to resolve the differences for so many years but took no step, unlike the MDA government.
Appreciating that the past governments have done their part to resolve the issue, he said Congress should realise that this process is moving forward and the matter needs a resolution. “This has a strong support from the people who want this dispute to be resolved,” he said.
However, the claims by the CM have not had any impact on the state Congress which is miffed at the government for not convening an all-party meeting on the interstate border dispute and also for keeping the public aloof on all the developments and the content of the recommendations made by the regional border committees, unlike Assam.
“There is so much confusion over the resolution of the dispute in six areas. No questions have been answered by the government and the public is unaware of the content of the report submitted by the regional committees,” Congress Legislature Party (CLP) chief Ampareen Lyngdoh said on Thursday.
Lyngdoh said she was unsure whether the Centre will fully agree with the joint report submitted by the two CMs to the Union Home Minister.
She referred to the all-party meeting convened by the Assam chief minister prior to his departure for Delhi with his Meghalaya counterpart and said, “The Assam CM disclosed details of the recommendations made by the border committees with all parties of the state while in Meghalaya we are still in the dark. Every media house and news agencies in Assam had published details about which areas will go to Assam and what is coming to Meghalaya.”
“We also want our government to share the information with us so that we become confident and assured that a permanent resolution of the vexed border dispute is not far away,” she added.