Assam and Arunachal border dispute may end, both states will sign MoU in the presence of Amit Shah

The long-standing border dispute between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh may be resolved soon. The governments of the two northeastern states will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in New Delhi on Thursday (April 20) in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to end the border dispute.

Assam cabinet approves the recommendations of the committees

The Assam cabinet on Wednesday approved the recommendations made by 12 regional committees constituted by the state government to resolve the issue of border dispute with Arunachal Pradesh that has been going on for decades, news agency ANI reported. The decision was taken during a meeting of the state cabinet held in Guwahati under the chairmanship of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

Assam gave final shape to MoU

Minister Atul Bora informed that Assam on its part has finalized the MoU and it will be sent to the neighboring state for approval. He said, “The draft MoU was thoroughly discussed and finalised. Now its copy will be shared with the Government of Arunachal Pradesh and if they agree, we expect the MoU to be signed in this month. However, he also said that it cannot be said that the MoU will be the final solution.

What is the Assam-Arunachal border dispute?

Arunachal Pradesh and Assam have disputes over about 1,200 points along the 804-km border. The controversy originated in the 1970s and intensified in the 1990s. However, the issue dates back to 1873 when the British government introduced the Inner-Line Regulation, which separated the plains from the frontier hills. This area became the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) in 1954.

Three years after a notification based on the 1951 report, 3,648 sq km of the plains of Balipara and Sadiya foothills were transferred to the Darrang and Lakhimpur districts of Assam. Arunachal Pradesh leaders claim that the transfer was done arbitrarily without consulting their tribesmen, who had rights over these lands. Their counterparts in Assam say the 1951 demarcation is constitutional and legal.

Efforts to resolve border dispute between Assam and Arunachal

Several attempts were made between 1971 and 1974 to demarcate the boundary between Assam and NEFA/Arunachal Pradesh. To end the impasse, a high-powered tripartite committee comprising the Center and both the states was formed in April 1979 to determine the boundary on the map of India on the basis of a survey. The interstate boundary of about 489 km north of the Brahmaputra river was demarcated by 1984 but Arunachal Pradesh did not accept the recommendations and claimed most of the areas transferred in 1951.

Assam objected to this and approached the Supreme Court in 1989 alleging encroachment by Arunachal Pradesh. The court appointed a Local Boundary Commission in 2006, headed by a retired judge. In its September 2014 report, this commission recommended that Arunachal Pradesh should take back some of the territories transferred in 1951 and advised the two states to find a middle ground through discussions. However, this did not work.