Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR : Former Home Minister and senior political leader Tanga Byaling has urged the Arunachal Pradesh government to review and re-notify the boundary demarcation between Upper Subansiri and Kamle districts, citing concerns over the long-standing inter-district boundary dispute.
Addressing a press conference at the Arunachal Press Club here on Saturday, Byaling said the Home Department notification issued on May 27, 2020 requires a comprehensive review to ensure fairness, transparency and clarity in the demarcation process.
He stated that while Ligu and Liruk villages were included under Kamle district through the Arunachal Pradesh (Reorganisation of Districts) Acts of 1980 and 2017, the 2020 notification reportedly brought several other areas and colonies—Sigum Rijo, Dilidi Colony, Sinyik Colony, Power Grid Colony, Santi Colony and Lidu Colony—under Kamle district’s jurisdiction despite their long-standing association with Upper Subansiri district.
Maintaining that villages and settlements historically belonging to Upper Subansiri should not be excluded through administrative notifications, Byaling called on the state government to initiate a transparent, impartial and mutually acceptable process for physical demarcation of the inter-district boundary.
Expressing concern over the ongoing Special Intensive Review (SIR) process, he urged the government to ensure that an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 residents affected by the boundary dispute are not deprived of their rights or excluded during the exercise.
Byaling further claimed that the 2020 Home Department notification extended the jurisdiction of the Raga Police Station up to the Sigin River under Kamle district. He appealed to the Upper Subansiri Deputy Commissioner and Kamle Deputy Commissioner to jointly examine the gazette notification and undertake an unbiased and transparent boundary demarcation exercise in the larger interest of the affected population.
A fair and amicable resolution of the boundary issue, he said, is essential to prevent administrative confusion and safeguard the interests of residents living in the disputed areas.
