Drawing attention on reports appearing in the August 17 issue of local newspapers, United Naga Tribes Area Border Association (UNTABA) has slammed the statement purportedly made by the state home minister which it described as “not only nonsensical but completely contradicting the Border Affairs department” .
UNTABA chairman Hukavi T. Yeputhomi and general secretary Imsumongba Pongen in a joint statement quoted the home minister as stating that all efforts had been made to secure Nagaland border. They said this was contradictory to the Border Affairs department which was seriously involved in litigation of the border dispute for the past three decades filed by the then AGP government of Assam. They said Nagaland was respondent No.3 in the Civil Suit No.2 in which Assam claimed in the Supreme Court that the inter-state boundary between Assam and Nagaland was yet to be clearly demarcated.
They said the “lame utterances” of the minister showed lack of co-ordination among government authorities and also revealed complete lack of responsibility and political will. This has only created more confusion among the people on an issue that confronted them daily.
UNTABA pointed out that Assam deployed 47 Assam Police posts along the border and even inside Nagaland while Nagaland has only 14 Nagaland Police posts since the 1972 interim agreement between the two states( as per figures with Border Affairs department) and reaffirmed in 1979. As per the agreement, UNTABA said administrative power was given Assam on the condition that it would not permit any settlements in the disputed border. However, even before denotifying the reserved forests, Assam allowed border areas to be completely deforested to facilitate illegal settlements to people with doubtful origin.
It said the entire border from Doldoli Reserved Forest near Dimapur, to Tiru Reserve Forest and Abhayapur Reserved Forest in Mon districts have today become townships. UNTABA criticised successive governments in the state for overlooking “such hard realities”.
The signatories maintained that UNTABA continued to urge and campaign with the state government to sincerely pursue the right perspective – fight vigorously for implementation of the Interim Agreement “in letter and spirit” through eviction of illegal settlements facilitated by Assam, in borer areas of all reserves forests. They said UNTABA reiterated its demand for implementation of the 16 Point Agreement between the government of India and people of Nagaland during formation of Nagaland state.