Mokokchung-Jorhat border coordination meet held

DIPR Dimapur, April 7 Border districts joint coordination meeting between Mokokchung, Nagaland and Assam’s Jorhat was held in the Jorhat DC’s conference hall on April 6. The meeting jointly presided over by the respective Deputy Commissioners of the two districts, Sushil Kumar Patel, Mokokchung and Vishal Solanki, Jorhat reviewed the prevailing situation in the border areas of both sides and other issues of public interest and beneficial for both sides. The discussions laid emphasis on averting misunderstanding and sorting out all border issues through mutual discussions between the officers of the two districts. The meeting strongly felt that activities undertaking on both sides of the border such as tea plantation, setting fire on jhum fields and routine patrolling undertaking by forest officials or other district officials should be brought to the notice of the either side to prevent misunderstanding over such activities, thereby creating suspicions among the people living on border areas. Deputy Commissioner, Johat, Vishal Solanki and S.P Amanjeet Kaur shared their concerns over setting fire on Nagaland side as it threatens the plantation and forest on Assam side. Mokokchung DC, Patel and the SP, Aotemsu made it clear that setting fire on jhum fields on Nagaland side during February–March is a regular activity undertaking by the jhum farmers, otherwise they do not set fire randomly in the jungle. It was agreed that villagers on Nagaland side be asked to inform ADC Mangkolemba with regard to setting fire in their jhum fields and the same information be passed, if necessary, to officials on Assam side. DC Mokokchung also shared his concern over overloaded coal trucks plying on Mokokchung-Mariani road. The two DCs addressing the closed-door meeting opined that frequent joint coordination meeting among border district officials is the key to maintain peace in the border areas and sorting out all issues on the table without allowing it to go out of proportion. Aiming at removing misunderstanding over frequent patrolling of police personnel on border areas, the two district SPs agreed that information on such exercise be shared and also agreed to instruct Officers-in-Charge of police posted closed to DAB to meet frequently and shared information. Earlier, as a gesture of good neighbourly relations, officers from both sides presented their gifts to their counterparts. Winding up the meeting, D.C Jorhat announced that the next meeting will be held at Mokokchung and he requested his counterpart to invite officials from Wokha district to make the meeting more fruitful.