Dimapur: Nagaland deputy chief minister Y Patton on Thursday said the state cabinet had agreed to establish a Special Border Response Force (SBRF), including personnel from border affairs, police, and forest departments, for prompt response to any border issues.
Making a statement on the eviction of illegal immigrants from the disputed area belt (DAB) along Assam on the concluding day of the two-day seventh session of the 14th Nagaland assembly, Patton, also in charge of home and border affairs, assured the House that the state government will continue all necessary steps to protect the interests of its citizens in all border districts, ensuring no unilateral actions are taken and that all eviction or plantation drives are strictly joint undertakings.
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He appealed to all civil society organisations and the media to rely only on verified official sources for all information related to recent developments in the DAB.
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Patton stated that the state cabinet on July 30 decided that all eviction drives would be conducted jointly by district administrations and police from both Nagaland and Assam to ensure that no unilateral actions are taken and to prevent the influx of illegal immigrants.
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He informed the House that after discussions between the chief ministers of Nagaland and Assam on August 21, both parties agreed to halt any further plantations or pillar erections until matters are resolved at the chief ministerial level, following which on August 26, the cabinet resolved that all illegal immigrants are to be evicted, and any required plantation drives will be carried out jointly by both states, with coordination among district administrations, police, forest departments, and involvement of local communities.
He also stated that the state cabinet had resolved to communicate with the Union home minister and ministry of home affairs regarding the continued presence of Assam police forces in the DAB, which is contrary to the 1972 Agreement.
He said Assam now operates 45 permanent police outposts in the DAB, while Nagaland has withdrawn all its five pre-1972 police outposts.