Nongpoh, August 22: The governments of Meghalaya and Assam have agreed on a series of measures to restore normal movement between the two states and ensure the safe passage of tourists and vehicles following violence in Shillong on August 19.
The decisions were taken at a joint meeting between senior officials of the two governments at the Koinadhara State Guest House on Saturday. The meeting was led by Meghalaya Deputy Chief Minister S. Dhar and Assam Minister Atul Bora and lasted for more than three hours.
The Meghalaya government expressed regret over the August 19 incident and assured Assam that strong action would be taken against those responsible.
It informed the meeting that the president, vice-president and general secretary of the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) had been arrested under the Meghalaya Maintenance of Public Order Act.
Fifteen first information reports have so far been registered in connection with the violence, according to the Meghalaya government. Five masked people have also been identified as allegedly being involved in the attacks, particularly those targeting vehicles registered in Assam.
A Special Investigation Team has been constituted to identify all those involved in the violence and ensure that they are prosecuted in accordance with the law.
The two governments also reviewed the movement of stranded travellers and vehicles. More than 3,770 Assam-registered vehicles have so far been safely escorted out of Meghalaya into Assam.
The Assam Control Room has received 54 distress calls involving 175 people seeking assistance, including occupants of 22 private vehicles and five tourist vehicles. Meghalaya said its own control room had received 379 distress calls and that arrangements were being made to facilitate safe transit.
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Most of the stranded travellers and vehicles have since moved through key transit corridors, including the Umiam Lake section. The governments said about 400 to 500 vehicles that had earlier been held up in Meghalaya had successfully crossed the affected routes.
Any passengers or vehicles still stranded are to be escorted safely into Assam within the next 48 hours. The two governments said a dedicated effort would be made to ensure that every tourist or vehicle wishing to return to Assam is facilitated and escorted safely.
The states also agreed to establish a dedicated coordination mechanism involving the Inspector General of Police, Special Branch, Assam, and the Inspector General of Police, Law and Order, Meghalaya. Dedicated helplines and an online support forum will be activated to help locate and assist stranded people.
The coordination mechanism will remain operational until the situation has been fully normalised.
The governments further agreed to establish permanent district-level joint committees involving the Deputy Commissioner of Nongpoh and the Deputy Commissioner of Kamrup Metropolitan, along with police officers of corresponding rank from both sides. The committees will address day-to-day issues arising along the inter-state border.
A separate joint committee involving senior transport officials from both states and representatives of tourist vehicle associations will also be formed to facilitate and regulate tourist transport and protect the shared tourism interests of Assam and Meghalaya.
Both governments also committed to ensuring safe passage for vehicles travelling between different parts of Assam through Meghalaya, including vehicles travelling from the Barak Valley. Similar arrangements will be made for people travelling between different parts of Meghalaya through Assam.
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The Meghalaya government reiterated that it would take responsibility for the safety and security of tourists and vehicles travelling from Assam and other parts of India into Meghalaya, including during their stay and movement within the state.
The meeting comes amid heightened tensions following the August 19 violence in Shillong, which triggered concerns over the safety of Assam-registered vehicles and tourists travelling between the two neighbouring states.
The governments’ latest commitments are aimed at restoring confidence in inter-state travel while establishing longer-term mechanisms to prevent local disputes from disrupting movement and tourism across the Meghalaya-Assam border
