Assam-Mizoram policemen clash

More than five policemen have died in India after police from two states named Assam and Mizoram fired at each other.

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Assam shares a 164km (about 101 miles) border with Mizoram, and both states contest its demarcation.

Under colonial rule, Lushai Hills, as Mizoram was then known, was part of Assam. The region only gained recognition in 1972 – almost three decades after India’s independence – when it became a separate federally administered area. In 1987, it became a fully-fledged state.

Three districts in Assam – Cachar, Hailakandi and Karimganj – share a 164km-long border with three districts of Mizoram.

The forested area is contested at several points, with both Assam and Mizoram accusing each other of encroaching on their land.

The federal government has been trying to mediate a truce between the states since 1994 but has failed to achieve a breakthrough.

Tensions escalated to an unprecedented level in October 2020 when residents of Assam and Mizoram clashed twice in a week. At the heart of the matter was an “eviction drive” carried out by Assam along a contested part of the border – authorities from the state reportedly burned a farmhouse and crops in the area.