HT Correspondent
HAFLONG, March 23: The NC Hills Indigenous People’s Forum (IPF) on Thursday resounded the need of setting up of a Boundary Demarcation Commission.
The IPF also submitted a memorandum in this regard to chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
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Setting up of a Boundary Demarcation Commission headed by a retired judge of a high court or a retired IAS Officer, was agreed upon during the meeting of the IPF with the GoMC on September 11, 2022.
“There is no news of the formation of the Boundary Demarcation Commission which proves the negligence of the GOA to the IPF,” the IPF stated.
The memo to the CM further stated that there should not be any involvement of Dimasa leaders in the the GOA-IPF Talks.
It further envisages revocation of the notification of the NCHAC, Haflong for the PRCS,
creation of a separate assembly constituency in the ensuing delimitation of parliamentary and assembly constituencies in Assam.
“It may seem odd and rather narrow minded on our part to ask for not to involve the Dimasa leaders in the GOA-IPF Talks. But, we cannot help asking so considering the nature and attitude of the Dimasas towards the Indigenous Hill Tribal People. We, the IPF Community are neither against the freedom of the Dimasas nor jealous of their prosperity in the least,” IPF stated.
In most of our memoranda, we have asked the govt to grant the highest possible political status to the Dimasas provided that we, the indigenous hill tribal people are not included within whatever political status that may be granted to the Dimasas. On the other hand, the Dimasas are always against the least freedom of the hill dwelling tribal people. They are ambitious to put those people always under their control, the memo stated.
“We are not demanding the land of the Dimasas like Maibang valley which they are claiming as their past kingdom. We are demanding our ancestral land; the hill region which was never under the control of the Dimasa king. It may be noted here of the fact that it is the Dimasas themselves who have claimed to be the sons of the great river. We know that there is no big river(s) in our ancestral land of the hill areas of the North Cachar Hills District which, by a common sense, cannot be the habitation of the sons of the great river.
We have highlighted in detail the nature and attitude of the Dimasas towards the indigenous hill tribal people in our proceeding memoranda. By their very nature, the Dimasas are not conversant with the customs, cultures and habits of the hill tribes and hence, cannot maintain cordial co-existence with them. As such, it will be futile to expect any good thing for the indigenous hill tribal people out of any meeting where the Dimasas are allowed to have a say.
That during the meeting of the IPF with the GOMC at Dispur on the September 11, 2022, it was agreed upon for setting up of a Boundary Demarcation Commission headed by a retd judge of a high court or a retd IAS officer which however has not been reflected when the Minutes of the Meeting came out,” the memo stated.
