Aizawl: More than 7,000 students from 20 colleges and institutions held a rally in the state capital of Aizawl on Friday protesting against the state government’s inaction on the Assam border issue with Assam. The agitation was spearheaded by the state’s apex student body, Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP).
The students burnt a map of the state in protest and said it displayed an inaccurate depiction of its boundary. They also asked the Mizoram government needs to take action to resolve the issue by outlining the map as per the agreement made during a meeting of the Mizoram Council of Ministers in 1875.
The meeting then had released a notification outlining the Mizoram-Assam boundary as per the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation 1873, which has allegedly not been adopted.
The MZP on Friday announced a resolution demanding that the state government occupy the 509 sq miles in the Inner Line Reserve Forest Area, currently under the jurisdiction of the Assam Forest Department. The students said such an action can be taken as per the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Prevention of Atrocities Act.
"The student body looks forward to the state government taking action with regard to the settlement of the Mizoram and Assam border issue to avoid losing our land and to protect our forefathers’ land," said MZP chief L Ramdinliana Renthlei. "While it has been three months since a core committee was formed to look into the matter, no action has been taken so far."
In March last year, tension erupted when MZP members tried to construct a resting shed in the Zophai area near Bairabi to mark the state’s boundary, but they were met with hostility from the Assam Police. Many students and journalists were injured in a lathi-charge.
Tension erupted again this year when on July 6, the Assam forest department re-occupied an old building of security forces near Lailapoor on the disputed land.
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