Border fencing works to remain suspended
Source: Chronicle News Service

Moreh, January 24 2023: The fencing works being carried out along the In-do-Myanmar boundary near border pillar number 81 by BRTF will remain suspended till amicable solution is arrived at.

A decision to this effect was brought about after the villagers of Kwatha village and Manipur government team led by Tribal Affairs & Hills minister Letpao Haokip inspected the disputed area on Monday.

During the visit, the minister was accompanied by Teng-noupal DC Yumnam Ranjan, SP B Golianmang, Moreh ADC L Bobby and BRTF (82 RCC) OC Manish Punya.

After assess ing the disputed site, the team unanimously agreed that the border fencing works will be suspended for now and shall resume only after an amicable solution has been brought about over the issue.

While airing their grievances to the minister,, some Kwatha villagers said they stopped the fencing work near the disputed border pillar number 81 after the pillar was found erected by BRTF 30 metres inside the Indian territory, leaving even the Namjufa River on the side of Myanmar.

The river is actually the spot demarcating the bor ders of India and Myanmar.

The villagers have been protesting against the border pillar's installation on the ground that no land of Manipur should be given away to Myanmar, they said.

The villagers also claimed that BRTF is carrying out fencing works inside Manipur land by leaving, vast tract of land to Myanmar in-spite of the historical fact and documents that they had part of Manipur even before the British colonised Manipur.

They said this cannot be accepted under any circumstances.

The disputed pillar number 81 falls in between Kwatha Khullen village and Myanmar's Kondong.

The fencing construction has been kept in abeyance until an agreement is reached between the villagers residing in the two countries.

The Kwatha villagers were furious that around 30 metres of their land including the Namjellok rivulet, a tributary of the Chindwin River, also called Ningthi in Manipur, had been left on the Myanmar side.

The border fencing along pillar No 81 was carried out by the Border Road Task Force (BRTF) but the works were prohibited by villagers of Kwatha and Kwatha Khullen in the Manipur sector recently.

Since then the Indian authority has sent a team from the Manipur government to inspect and assess the situation prevailing there.

A Kwatha Khullen elderly villager also told the visiting team that a memorial place of Manipur's king has been left on the Myanmar side.

After thorough inspections, the team agreed to halt work of construction of border fencing until the responsible parties arrive at an amicable resolution.

Kwatha village, about 117 km from the state's capital Imphal, has a historical link since 1819-1826, when the kingdom of Manipur lost its sovereignty to the Burmese.

The years 1819-1826 is known in the annals of Manipur history as seven years of devasta -tion, the period of chaos and devastations in the erstwhile independent Manipur.

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