Manipur urges MHA to share draft accord with NSCN-IM

demands of the Nagas have been almost resolved, differences remain over a separate flag and separate Constitution.

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh had earlier asserted that the Centre's ongoing peace talks with the NSCN-IM in Delhi won't affect the territorial boundaries of his state.

Various civil society organisations in Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam have strongly voiced their opposition to any decision that affected the territorial boundaries of these states.

United Committee Manipur (UCM), one of the influential civil society groups, has again urged the government and state leaders to make their stand clear on the issue.

The UCM said it always welcomed the peace process in the north-eastern region but would not compromise on any agreement that affected the territorial integrity of Manipur in any way.

In another development, the All Arunachal Pradesh Students' Union has reiterated that there are no Nagas in their state, as claimed by the NSCN-IM, and asserted that any "territorial changes" while finding a solution to the Naga problem would not be tolerated.

Nagalim, a long-pending demand of the NSCN-IM for a separate Naga state, encompasses the Naga-inhabited areas of Myanmar as well as parts of northeastern states bordering Nagaland. The Nagalim map the outfit published a few years back includes Tirap, Changlang, Longding, Anjaw, Lohit, and Namsai districts of Arunachal Pradesh.

Student and social organisations in Assam are also opposed to any settlement that affects the territorial boundaries of the state.

The NSCN-IM has held a number of rounds of negotiations with the central government in Delhi and even outside India after signing a ceasefire pact in August 1997. The Modi government signed a "framework agreement" with the NSCN-IM in 2015.

( With inputs from IANS )