By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, June 4: Farmers from Lapangap village resumed cultivation on Thursday under the protection of Meghalaya Police, days after the two states reached an interim understanding to ease tensions in the disputed border tract.
The move has come as a relief for local cultivators who faced uncertainty in recent weeks amid renewed tensions over the interstate boundary.
Members of the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU), Lapangap unit, thanked Deputy Chief Minister Sniawbhalang Dhar — the Nartiang MLA — for his intervention, saying he acted promptly to enable farmers to return to their fields.
The breakthrough followed a high-level meeting at the Assam Police Camp earlier this week that included ministers, senior bureaucrats, police officials and representatives of local bodies from Meghalaya and Assam. The meeting was a follow-up to talks between Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
Both sides agreed that villagers from Lapangap would be allowed to continue paddy cultivation in the foothill areas of the disputed tract, while residents of Tahpat in Karbi Anglong would continue cultivating seasonal crops such as banana, pineapple and ginger on the hilltops and slopes.
The arrangement is intended to preserve the status quo and protect farmers’ livelihoods till the time a permanent resolution is reached.
The agreement follows an earlier May 18 meeting convened by the West Jaintia Hills district administration that failed to produce consensus among stakeholders. With cultivation resuming under police escort, residents of Lapangap expressed optimism that peace will hold while the border issue is resolved through dialogue.
