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Arunachal rights panel seeks better infrastructure in Chakma-Hajong settlements
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The Arunachal Pradesh State Human Rights Commission (APSHRC) has recommended urgent infrastructure and flood control interventions in the Chakma and Hajong settlement areas under the State’s Changlang district.In a statement on Monday (June 22, 2026), the rights panel said such measures were essential to ensure that the migrant populations and their descendants do not relocate beyond their designated settlements, thereby safeguarding the demographic interests of the indigenous communities of Arunachal Pradesh.The Centre settled the largely Buddhist Chakmas and the Hindu Hajongs, displaced by the Kaptai Dam in erstwhile East Pakistan and subsequent religious persecution, in the 1960s. They have been in intermittent conflicts with the indigenous communities, who maintain that the Centre did not consult them before deciding to settle the migrants in their ancestral lands.Bamang Tago, the APSHRC’s acting Chairperson, said that he apprised Chief Minister Pema Khandu of the need to develop infrastructure around the Chakma-Hajong settlements. He highlighted findings from a field visit undertaken to Chakma and Hajong settlements in the Diyun and Bordumsa circles of Changlang district on June 12 and 13.The commission identified two critical issues requiring immediate government intervention–poor road connectivity and recurring floods. It observed that road infrastructure in the Chakma-Hajong settlement areas “remains severely underdeveloped” despite the region’s growing economic significance.According to the APSHRC, improved connectivity would not only facilitate economic development in Changlang and the adjoining Namsai district but also strengthen strategic and security interests, given the presence of the 2nd Arunachal Pradesh India Reserve Battalion headquarters at Diyun. “Better roads would ensure efficient movement of security forces during emergencies and law-and-order situations,” the APSHRC said, noting the significant contribution of the region’s areca nut economy.The Commission also drew attention to the annual damage from recurring floods. It said the Dihing River erodes cultivable land and destroys crops in Chakma and Hajong settlement areas every year.“Such displacement has historically led to pressures for expansion beyond existing settlement areas,” the panel said, insisting that effective flood control measures would help ensure that the refugee communities continue residing within their notified settlement areas.The migration of the refugees from their notified settlements to other parts of Arunachal Pradesh is believed to be one of the factors behind ethnic conflicts in the State. EOM Published - June 23, 2026 02:53 am IST
Days after RSS leaders advocated keeping the window open for “people-to-people” ties with Pakistan, members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs on Friday (June 19, 2026) questioned Foreign Secretary Vikram Mistry and other officials on whether the government is considering such a step.Ministry officials said Track-II diplomacy by non-governmental groups has continued with Pakistan, though they did not express confidence in it having any significant impact on changing Pakistan’s stance.The meeting was convened to brief the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, headed by senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, before the panel’s study tour to Jammu, Srinagar, and Leh from June 22 to 25. The meeting was sparsely attended, with members of the Trinamool Congress and the Shiv Sena (UBT), both of which are facing splits, skipping it.According to sources, several questions were raised on future engagement with Pakistan, including whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi would attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit slated to be held in Pakistan next year. The Ministry did not give a clear reply, saying it is too early to take a call.Specifically, after government-to-government talks between the two countries made little headway, questions were raised on whether the Modi government is open to encouraging people-to-people ties. According to sources, the External Affairs Ministry said the government desires “normal neighbourly relations” but emphasised that this has to “happen in an atmosphere free of violence and terrorist activity”.The Ministry also pointed out that 4,600 Indian pilgrims have visited Pakistan this year. The diplomatic mission, along with weekly telephone calls between Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) across the Line of Control, has continued, officials said. The ceasefire has also largely held, a Ministry official added.The Ministry listed steps taken since the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack, where 26 tourists were gunned down, including the designation of The Resistance Front (TRF) as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) by the U.S. State Department, and its inclusion on the radar of the U.N. terror monitoring committee. The Indus Waters Treaty, 1960, will remain in abeyance until Pakistan, the official said, “credibly and irrevocably abjures” support for cross-border terrorism.Some members pointed to what they described as the government’s failed attempts to push for Pakistan’s return to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list and to secure the listing of the TRF under the U.N. Security Council sanctions regime.On China, External Affairs Ministry officials, according to sources, stressed that people-to-people ties are strengthening. More visas are expected to be issued this year for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, with flights suspended since 2020 set to resume.The Ministry, sources said, conceded there are still a few “supply-chain issues” between the two countries, particularly relating to tunnel-boring machines, rare earths, solar cells, and pharmaceuticals, but added that it is working with Chinese counterparts to resolve them. It also informed the panel that new mechanisms have been put in place in Leh to achieve disengagement and manage the boundary, in response to questions on when the status quo ante would be restored along the India-China border. Published - June 19, 2026 10:55 pm IST
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