GUWAHATI, Aug 11: Assam Minister Atul Bora said on Sunday that the next round of discussions to resolve the state’s border dispute with Mizoram will be held in Guwahati in January next year.
Bora, the border protection and development minister, said both the state governments wanted a solution to the decades-old dispute to ensure permanent peace and security for those residing near the inter-state boundary on both sides.
The minister was talking to reporters here after returning from Aizawl, where he had led a delegation from Assam, which engaged in talks to resolve the boundary dispute with a team of the Mizoram government, led by its Home Minister K Sapdanga, last week.
“The border talks remained stalled due to the assembly elections in Mizoram last year. Now, we are on track again. A ministerial group of Mizoram will visit Guwahati for the next round of talks by January. We have extended our invitation to them,” Bora said.
The two northeastern states held the border talks in Aizawl last week after a gap of 20 months with the previous meeting conducted in November 2022 in Guwahati.
He said the Assam delegation also called on Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhawma during the visit.
“He (Mizoram CM) was clear in his statement before us that they too want a lasting solution to the border problem as the people living in those areas are facing uncertainty. We thank him for his resolve,” Bora added.
After the meeting in Aizawl on Friday, both the states had reiterated their commitment to find solutions to amicably resolve the dispute.
They also reaffirmed their commitment to continue with the zero-tolerance policy towards the transportation of smuggled areca nuts from neighbouring countries.
It was also decided that the administrative authorities of border districts of both states will organise joint cultural and sports festivals, commencing before March 31 next year to improve relations.
It was the fourth ministerial-level talk between the two neighbouring states since August 2021, and the first meeting after the Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) came to power in Mizoram in December last year.
Three Assam districts – Cachar, Karmganj and Hailankandi – share a 164.6-km border with Mizoram’s Aizawl, Kolasib and Mamit districts.
The dispute mainly stems from two colonial demarcations of 1875 and 1933. (PTI)
