The third round of Mizoram-Assam border talks will not be held on 4 November as proposed earlier, a senior official of the Mizoram Home department said on Wednesday.
The Mizoram government had already sent a request to the Assam government to defer the border talks to 9-11 November in view of President Droupadi Murmu’s visit to the state, additional secretary in the Home department, Lalhriatpuia said.
The president will arrive in Aizawl on Thursday to attend the convocation of Mizoram University (MZU) and inaugurate various projects. She will also address the Mizoram Assembly on Friday before leaving the state.
Previously, the border talks were scheduled to be held in Guwahati on Thursday (November 4).
Lalhriatpuia said the Mizoram government is yet to receive consent from the Assam government for the dates for the next round of talks.
He said that the Assam government could not give its response to the proposal for talks to be held on 9 – 11 November because it is busy with the next state cabinet meeting.
Besides, the concerned minister and officials in Assam have also travelled to Arunachal Pradesh recently, he said.
The additional secretary said that they are closely in touch with their Assam counterparts over the issue.
“The file proposing postponement of the upcoming talks is being processed. It is yet to reach the office of Assam chief minister, home minister and border protection and development minister,” Lalhriatpuia told PTI.
He said that the Assam government will fix the new date if it’s not convenient with the date proposed by Mizoram.
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Three Mizoram districts – Aizawl, Kolasib and Mamit – share a 164.6 km long border with Assam’s Cachar, Karimganj and Hailakandi districts.
The border dispute between the two neighbouring states remained unresolved for decades.
In July last year, seven people, including six Assam policemen, died when security forces of the two states exchanged fire during a dispute near Mizoram’s Vairengte village on the National Highway-306.
