Shillong, May 19: Speaking on the hardships faced by the farmers of Lapangap, who have been unable to continue cultivation till today due to obstruction from Karbi people, Meghalaya Cabinet Minister and MDA Government spokesperson Wailadmiki Shylla said that after the Assam elections conclude, the government will soon resume border settlement talks and expressed confidence that the issue faced by the residents of Lapangap would be resolved.
“This harassment and obstruction faced by the residents of Lapangap from the Karbi people while carrying out cultivation is not a recent incident, but something that has happened repeatedly,” said Wailadmiki Shylla. He further added that the state government has been holding discussions from time to time with the Assam Government to speed up the border settlement process so as to avoid such tensions in the border areas.
He also informed that out of the 12 disputed areas along the border between Meghalaya and Assam, six areas have already been resolved, while the remaining six disputed areas are more complicated and difficult in terms of settlement.
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He further added that the farmers of Lapangap have also faced difficulties during harvesting seasons, recalling incidents where they were even stopped from cutting their paddy crops. However, the government intervened seriously, after which the farmers were allowed to harvest and collect paddy from their fields.
Speaking further on the recent incident in which Lapangap farmers were prevented from going to their fields for cultivation, Wailadmiki Shylla said that the matter is still under discussion between the Meghalaya and Assam governments.
He further added that the difficulty in resolving the Lapangap issue arises because the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) and the Karbi people keep changing their statements from time to time. Nevertheless, he expressed hope that during the ongoing border settlement talks, both sides would be able to hold special discussions to resolve the problems faced by the residents of Lapangap, he added.
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