Border shooting heightens tension

The Karbi-Anglong-Dimapur border continues to remain tense as the land dispute drags on. On April 14, one person suffered gunshot wounds after unidentified gunmen opened fire on a group of people, who were reportedly clearing jungle near Dikoi village. The person, a man in his thirties, sustained a gunshot wound to the abdomen. The injured was from one of the many groups who are clearing land in the disputed border belt, to make way for farming and human settlement.

The settlers at Dikoi said that the firing started at around 9:00 am and lasted for two hours. The gunmen were in ‘khaki’ and in civvies, the settlers said, while it could not be confirmed who were behind the shooting. It was reported that a number of people were injured while running for cover during the shooting . After a lull, more shots rang out in the afternoon lasting a few minutes. No casualty was reported in the second firing incident, which occurred today.

Dikoi village fall along the disputed Karbi-Anglong-Dimapur border, and is bounded by Rangapahar Military Station on the east, Aoyimkum on the north, Sangtamtilla on the south and the Assam-Nagaland interstate border on the west. The gunshots came from the south-west, it was added.

The settlers at Dikoi claimed that the village was established in 1989 and is recognised by the Nagaland state government. One man, identifying himself as the secretary of the village council, said that it is receiving village development funds, ration dole-out and government-approved headman like any other village. According to the present count, the village has a population of 500.