Aizawl: Assam and Mizoram are set to engage in ministerial-level discussions on Friday in an effort to resolve their long-standing border dispute. The meeting will take place in Aizawl, the capital of Mizoram, with Assam's Border Protection & Development Minister Atul Bora leading the Assam delegation, accompanied by state government officials. Mizoram's Home Minister K Sapdanga will head the Mizoram team.

Minister Atul Bora told media that the Assam government had previously held talks with the former Mizoram government regarding the border issue. "This will be the first meeting with the new Mizoram government. The meeting will be held in Aizawl today," Bora stated. The Assam Minister is also expected to meet Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma tomorrow.

The last discussions on the border dispute were held in November 2021 and 2022. The dispute involves three districts of Mizoram—Kolasib, Aizawl, and Mamit—that share a 164.6 km border with Assam's Cachar, Hailakandi, and Karimganj districts.

The Assam government maintains that the constitutional boundary between Assam and Mizoram is defined by the Notification No. 2106 A.P dated 09.03.1933 and the State of Mizoram Act, 1986. However, Mizoram argues that the boundary should follow the Inner Line Notification No. 2299P dated 20/08/1875, based on historical and ethnic considerations.

Encroachments from Mizoram have been a persistent issue, leading to tensions. In a meeting held on September 24, 2014, the Chief Ministers of both states agreed to maintain the status quo and to pursue boundary delineation and demarcation through a tripartite mechanism involving the Survey of India and land authorities from both states.

The border dispute escalated into violence in July 2021, resulting in the deaths of seven Assam police personnel and injuries to several others. Since then, multiple rounds of meetings have been held between the delegations from Assam and Mizoram to seek an amicable resolution. Mizoram, originally a union territory carved out of Assam in 1972, became a state in 1987. Although it initially accepted the border with Assam, Mizoram has gradually started disputing the boundary.

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