Mizoram-Assam border talks likely in Aizawl in mid-November

The second round of official-level talks between Mizoram and Assam on their long-running border dispute is likely to be held in Aizawl in mid-November, Mizoram Home Minister K. Sapdanga said on Sunday, October 25.

Sapdanga told The Times of India that the state home department had proposed a three-day meeting, not necessarily on consecutive days, so that all technical and administrative issues could be covered. Assam's final response is still awaited, he said.

Who will lead the talks

Mizoram's delegation is likely to be led by state Home Secretary Vanlalmawia. Assam's team may be headed by a senior official of its Border Protection and Development Department.

Why the delay

The last official-level talks were held in Guwahati on April 25 last year. They dealt mainly with technical and administrative issues relating to the 164.6-km shared boundary and laid the ground for further ministerial-level negotiations.

Officials said that although both sides agreed to meet again soon, the talks were delayed for several reasons, including the Assembly election held in April this year.

The dispute

The two states differ on which historical line marks the boundary.

• Mizoram claims 509 square miles of the Inner Line Reserved Forest, demarcated in 1875 under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873, as its rightful area.
• Assam treats the boundary shown on a 1933 Survey of India map as its constitutional border.

How talks began

Tension along the border has led to many incidents over the years. Formal efforts to settle the dispute gained momentum after police forces of the two states exchanged fire on the outskirts of Vairengte in Mizoram's Kolasib district on July 26, 2021.

Assam opened talks in August that year, when its Border Protection and Development Minister Atul Bora led a delegation to Aizawl to meet a Mizoram team headed by the then home minister Lalchamliana. Since then the two states have held four rounds of ministerial talks, along with official-level negotiations and virtual meetings.

What's next

If Assam agrees to the dates, the November meeting would resume official-level work after more than 18 months.