GUWAHATI: On Thursday, the chief ministers of Assam and Meghalaya met Union home minister Amit Shah in Delhi and apprised him of the recommendations of regional committees of the two states, which suggested a division of six of the 12 disputed border areas between them with the help of a give-and-take formula of swapping land.

The two CMs urged the Centre to take necessary actions so that the recommendations get implemented.

According to the recommendations, of the total 36.79 sq km of disputed land in six areas - Gizang, Tarabari, Boklapara, Khanapara, Pilingkata and Ratacherra -Assam would get 18.51 sq km, while Meghalaya would be given 18.28 sq km.

The recommendations, which sought to end the five-decade-old border row between the two neighbours, were earlier approved by the Cabinets of both the states.

While the deal seems to have got the green signal from parties and groups in Shillong, several political outfits in Assam have opposed the proposed plan, saying it was hastily drawn up, and they blamed Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of deciding to give away the state’s territory allegedly encroached by Meghalaya.

The chiefs of Raijor Dal and Assam Jatiya Parishad - Akhil Gogoi and Lurinjyoti Gogoi, respectively - said that while the Assam government is trying to portray that each state would get nearly 50% share of the six disputed areas, in reality, Meghalaya would gain control of half the areas it had encroached, while Assam would only get back half of its land area that the neighbouring state had earlier taken control of.

Earlier, the Congress and the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), the two biggest opposition parties in the state assembly, had also opposed the land swap deal, saying it violated constitutional provisions regarding redrawing of boundaries between states and urged the BJP-led Assam government to discuss the issue in detail in the assembly before taking any hasty decision.

Assam also has border disputes with Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland. According to official data presented in the Assam assembly, the total disputed area with the four states is around 690 sq km.

There are apprehensions among some in Assam that if the formula agreed upon with Meghalaya is used to sort out all these disputes, the state could lose nearly 345 sq km of its land allegedly encroached by the neighbouring state.

Meanwhile, apprehending that they might have to be part of Meghalaya in the near future following the swap deal, some residents of Langpih (one the 12 disputed areas) have started protests, saying they want to remain as part of Assam. Such incidents and the opposition by political parties in Assam could put a spanner in what was being termed a historic deal.

Abductions and missing youngsters

On Sunday, five days after he went missing, China’s Peoples’ Liberation Army (PLA) confirmed to the Indian Army that they have located 17-year-old Miram Taron of Arunachal Pradesh in their territory. The news brought some relief, but for a good while there was no clarity on when he would be returned across the border, until Thursday’s welcome development, when the PLA handed him over to the Indian Army at the Wacha-Damai interaction point in Arunachal Pradesh.

Kiren Rijiju, minister of law and justice, tweeted on Thursday to confirm the teenager’s return, adding that due procedures were being followed, including medical examination.

Until his return on Thursday, the teenager was in the headlines following allegations that he was abducted by the PLA from Indian territory on January 18. Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Arunachal-East, Tapir Gao, had raised concerns by tweeting that the teenager, a resident of Zido village of Upper Siang district, was abducted from Lungta Jor under Siyungla area (Bishing village) of Upper Siang.

During those initial days of speculation and concern, district authorities disclosed that Taron and another friend were hunting and collecting medicinal herbs close to the border when he was allegedly abducted. His friend, who managed to escape, informed authorities about the incident. As soon as the news spread, the Indian Army got in touch with the PLA through hotline and requested help to trace the youngster.

The incident has shed light on previous such cases of persons from the border state going missing or getting allegedly abducted by the northern neighbour.

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In September 2020, five yougsters from Tagin tribe, who used to work as porters for the Indian Army, had gone missing from Upper Subansiri district on the Indian side of the McMahon line bifurcating Arunachal Pradesh and the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) of China.

Following their disappearance, a brother of one of the youngsters posted on social media that they had been “abducted” by the PLA. The same accusation was made by BJP MP Tapir Gao and Congress MLA from Pasighat, Ninong Ering. It was later revealed that the youngsters had strayed across the border during an expedition to hunt and collect medicinal herbs. They were handed back to India by Chinese authorities after 10 long days.

The Indian Army had said that it was the third such instance of youngsters from Arunachal Pradesh living near the Indo-China border “straying inadvertently to the other side of line of actual control (LAC)” during “adventurous forays”.

Muted celebrations

Three states in the northeast - Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur - reached a milestone in their history on January 21. All of them completed 50 years of statehood. But instead of the usual celebrations, festivities and events associated with the golden jubilee of statehood were curtailed due of the ongoing surge in Covid-19 cases in these states and across India.

Tripura and Manipur, both princely states, merged with India in 1949 (two years after Independence) and were made Union Territories seven year later. They got the status of full-fledged states on January 21, 1972. Meghalaya was created as an autonomous state within Assam in 1970 and attained full statehood on the same date as Manipur and Tripura did.

To mark 50 years of statehood, Meghalaya was to inaugurate 50 new projects. But that had to be paused for the time being because of the pandemic situation. Instead, the government decided that it will unveil close to 300 projects throughout the year. The golden jubilee function held at JN Sports Complex in Shillong was restricted to a crowd of just 3,000 people.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was expected to take part, but on statehood day he addressed a modest gathering of about 400-odd guests through video conferencing from Delhi. Meghalaya governor Satya Pal Malik’s address was read out during the programme and chief minister Conrad Sangma, who had tested positive for Covid-19, couldn’t attend the event.

In Imphal, Manipur CM N Biren Singh also took part in a scaled-down golden jubilee event marking statehood, and in Agartala, a special vaccination drive against Covid-19 was the highlight of the day. Modi addressed residents of both states on the special occasion through a video message that was telecast live.

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