NESO demands Joint Boundary Commission involving all NE States
DIMAPUR/AIZAWL, DEC 19 (NNN/MExN): In a meeting held in Dimapur that concluded last night, the North East Students Organisation (NESO) resolved to demand a Jammu & Kashmir-like status for the whole of the North East region.
Talking from Dimapur early this morning, NESO Vice President Lalmuanpuia Punte said after lengthy deliberation, the meeting decided that the Government of India should accord a J&K-like status to the region at least in terms to the land and its resources.
In this regard, the NESO will vigorously demand from the Central Government a Special Constitutional Status as such a provision exists within the Indian Constitution.
The case of Jammu and Kashmir was cited in this regard. It was also agreed upon that the Union government would be pressed, in an effort to allow the rights over land and natural resources with the purpose of achieving economic sovereignty.
Another important decision taken at the Dimapur meeting was to demand from the Central Government the setting up of a Joint Boundary Commission involving all the NE states for an early and honourable settlement of the inter-states border disputes.
The Mizo Zirlai Pawl’s President P.C. Laltlansanga who also attended the two day meeting pointed out the boundary disputes that Assam had with nearly all the NE states and blamed this on the Centre’s lack of involvement in the issue.
The two-day NESO meeting, which commenced on Saturday, also reviewed the Centre’s Look East policy which it felt would greatly impact the region.
The meeting said the Centre has to give more importance to the region than it does now and locate the international trade centre within the region rather than in Kolkata.
NESO has also demanded that the airport in Guwahati, now an international airport, should be allowed to operate as it has been designated and made to become part of the international air route.
NESO has also demanded that the Stillwell Road that begins from Ledo in Arunachal Pradesh and connects to the famous Road in Burma be repaired and opened for traffic.
Among others, the student body decided to urge upon the Centre to curb the activities of the ISI and Al Qaeda in the region as “these fundamentalist organizations have started operating in the NE with more than 14 sister branches.”
The apex student body of the seven sisters further appealed to all armed groups and Delhi to bring about peace in the region while reminding the Centre of expediting all ongoing political negotiations with armed outfits.
The NESO also resolved to urge the Central Government to immediately scrap the Provision 3 (1) (A) (B) of the Indian Citizenship Act as this provision gives the citizenship rights to all descendants of illegal foreigners who have entered NE up to September 2004.
Over the killing of students in Garo Hills on September 30 by Meghalaya police, the meeting decided that the Khasi Students Union and the Garo Students Union should jointly petition the Meghalaya government to set up a judicial inquiry.
Per se, the NESO will be starting “aggressive methods of democratic agitation movements to press demands for an early response” to their various demands. To begin with, there will be a dharna in all Raj Bhawans of the Northeast on June 16 next.
Before that it was decided that NESO leaders would meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other Central leaders.
Eight resolutions were made available to the media after NESO members deliberated at length on various agenda in its executive council meeting held on December 17 and December 18 here. The meeting was hosted by the NSF.
