Kohima, April 7: An all-party delegation from Nagaland, led by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, is set to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah to discuss pressing issues affecting the state. Key concerns include the long-standing Naga political dispute and the implications of border fencing and the Free Movement Regime (FMR) along the India-Myanmar border.

The Ministry of Home Affairs plans to phase out the FMR, which currently allows residents living along the India-Myanmar border to travel 16 kilometers across the border without a visa. Instead, the Ministry intends to implement a new system issuing passes for border residents living within 10 kilometers on both sides of the border to regulate cross-border movement.

Chief Minister Rio emphasized that the border restrictions would adversely affect the deep historical, ethnic, social, cultural, and economic ties of the Naga people on both sides of the border. The Nagaland Assembly unanimously passed a resolution on March 7 to send the all-party delegation to express the state’s concerns to the Union Home Minister.

The delegation will highlight the contentious Naga political issue, which has remained unresolved for decades. The Ministry of Home Affairs plans to build a ₹31,000 crore fence to control illegal activities such as smuggling along the 1,643-kilometer unfenced border shared by Nagaland, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, and Manipur.

The proposed changes to the FMR have sparked opposition from Nagaland and Mizoram governments, as well as numerous political parties and civil society organizations. The meeting aims to address these crucial matters and find a resolution to the long-standing issues affecting the state of Nagaland.