New Delhi: The Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sarma and Chief Minister of Meghalaya Conrad K Sangma, on Tuesday, signed an accord to end the 50-year-old boundary dispute between the two neighbouring states. The agreement was signed in Delhi in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
"It is a historic day for us. After this MoU, in the next 6-7 months, we aim to resolve the issue of the remaining disputed sites. We will work towards making the Northeast region a growth engine in the country," Sarma said after signing the agreement. Union Home Minister also requested to resolve the border disputes between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. "I had a meeting with AP CM where we formed a road map to settle 122 disputed points. Initial discussions have started with the CMs of Mizoram and Nagaland," he added.
"Today, a 50-year-old pending boundary dispute between Assam and Meghalaya has been resolved. 6 out of 12 points of the dispute has been resolved, which comprises nearly 70% of the boundary. The remaining 6 points will be resolved at the earliest," Amit Shah told media personnel. "Since 2014, Modi Ji has made numerous efforts for the development of the northeast region. Today, I congratulate Assam CM and Meghalaya CM and their teams on the signing of the agreement to resolve their boundary dispute," Shah said.
A draft resolution was submitted by the Chief Ministers of Assam and Meghalaya to the Union Home Minister Amit Shah on January 31 for examination and consideration by the MHA. The governments of Assam and Meghalaya had come up with a draft resolution to resolve their border disputes in six of the 12 "areas of difference" along the 884-km boundary. According to the proposed recommendations for the 36.79 square km of land, Assam will keep 18.51 square km and give the remaining 18.28 square km to Meghalaya.
(With agency inputs)
