Tezpur (Assam): Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Monday said that the decades-old pending issue of the Arunachal-Assam inter-state boundary row will be resolved once and for all, probably by the end of November. Khandu today chaired a day-long meeting with a high-level delegation from Assam headed by its Border Protection and Development Minister Atul Bora, several ministers and MLAs besides top officials of the Border Protection and Development department, and concerned deputy commissioners.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Khandu said "today’s meeting can be termed as the penultimate one in the series of meetings held between the two states after the historic Namsai Declaration." One more meeting is to be held between me and my Assam counterpart Himanta Biswa Sarma for a final agreement and permanent solution. Both of us are determined to resolve all our differences by the end of November,” he said.
Khandu informed that following the Namsai Declaration, 12 committees were formed headed by a cabinet minister – both by Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. These committees jointly visited the disputed areas, took feedback from people on both sides, and submitted their reports to their respective state governments.
“Today we discussed these reports district-wise in depth. I am happy that all reports are positive in effect and the committees of both the states have sincerely and jointly worked to find a permanent solution to this boundary issue,” he said. He pointed out that ‘if there is a strong political will’ no issue can remain unresolved for decades. He expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for their motivation and for being the guiding force in ensuring smooth communication between the two neighboring states to resolve the boundary row out of court.
“I have to especially thank Himanta Biswa Sarma for personally stepping out to resolve the boundary row not only with Arunachal Pradesh but with all other North Eastern states that share boundaries with Assam. The love and cooperation of the people of Assam always inspire me to work with zeal and spirit to resolve border issues. We are determined to resolve the border issues for peace and harmony between the loving people of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh,” Khandu added.
