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Mahanta announces finalisation of BAC boundary

Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta Friday said the boundaries of the Bodoland Autonomous Council would be finalised with 2,941 villages.

Bodo organisations had demanded 3031 villages in the BAC area.

Speaking at a seminar organised by the Union home ministry, the chief minister said the matter of including a 10-km belt along the Indo-Bhutan border in the BAC area has remained undecided for long. However, the Centre and the state were discussing the matter.

Inaugurating the seminar, Governor Lieutenant General (retd) S K Sinha stated that militancy in the state was retarding the economic development in the region. Besides the loss of several hundred innocent lives in senseless ethnic violence, he said, over 200,000 Bodos and Santhals were living in relief camps. This has been a big drain on the state's limited resources, he said.

The governor underscored that development of agriculture should be given top priority. The work on the Rs 5 billion Pagladiya multi-purpose project was due to start soon. It would be a great boon for the people of the area, he said.

UNI

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