NE: Sivasagar shuts down after border mayhem

Sivasagar, July 6: The All Asom Students Union (AASU) and Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad's (AJYCP) dawn-to-dusk bandh evoked complete response in upper Asom's Sivasagar district while tension ran high along the border areas with Nagaland since yesterday's attack by Naga raiders.

Simultaneously, an indefinite economic blockade to Nagaland called by the student bodies in protest against yesterday's attack also came into force this morning.

Sivasagar DC N M Hussain said over telephone that no untoward incident had been reported from anywhere in the district since last night.

''Additional forces have been fanned out to vulnerable areas along the Asom-Nagaland border,'' he added.

However, local residents said they heard explosions and firing sounds till late in the night from the other side of the boundary.

Three persons were killed and several others injured when Naga raiders barged into three Asom villages in the district yesterday's night, torching houses, killing cattle and assaulting villagers.

The raid continued for hours, forcing the villagers to flee the area.

Senior police officials have been camping in the Geleky area since yesterday.

Even though the Sivasagar district administration held discussions with their counterparts of Mukokchung district of the neighbouring state, nothing conclusive was achieved.

The Sivasagar deputy commissioner said the administration is in touch with Nagaland administration.

Meanwhile, the entire Sivasagar district observed 12 hour bandh in protest against the incident today.

All business establishments, educational institutions and banks remained closed while government offices recorded thin attendance.

Vehicles were off the road.

Sivasagar district AASU general secretary Pradeep Buragohain said the economic blockade called against Nagaland would be in force in at least four major roads connecting the state. ''Our indefinite economic blockade has started from 0500 hours today and it will be in effect in the Sonari-Namtula, Simoluguri-Bihubor, Geleky and Amguri-Tuli roads which connects the Sivasagar district with Mon and Mukokchung districts of Nagaland,'' he added.

As almost all the essential commodities to some districts of Nagaland like Mukokchung, Mon and Tuengchung are supplied through Sivasagar and Jorhat districts, the blockade is likely to hit the neighbouring state hard.

There was no statement from Nagaland government but the apparent reason behind the violence has been the Naga's attempt to assert their right over the disputed territory.

The incident has escalated the simmering tension again in this stretch of boundary which has remained disputed for past four decades.

The border has been a bone of contention between Asom and Nagaland, ever since the latter was carved out.

Sporadic incidents of encroachments, attacks, extortion and threats are frequently reported from all the six sectors of the Asom-Nagaland border, particularly in the three districts of Golaghat, Jorhat and Sivasagar.

Asom claims that over 1.6 lakh acres of land have been illegally encroached by Nagaland. The latter on its part asserts that the tracts belong to it 'historically and traditionally'.

Incidently, the proposed 'Greater Nagaland' or 'Nagalim' demand of the NSCN(IM) which includes ''all Naga dominated areas'' engulfs many portions of Asom, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur.

More than three Inter state border commission have failed to resolved the vexed dispute till date, while a panel appointed by the Supreme Court in currently looking into the matter.

Till date, there are neutral forces (CRPF) in the boundary as Asom and Nagaland police were engaged in full scale cross firing in the past.

UNI