Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Tynsong said the state government will pursue the passage of the 125th Constitutional Amendment Bill with the Centre, which will enable implementation of the Agreed Text for Settlement signed with the disbanded Garo rebel groups.
This amendment will improve the functioning of the district councils with
more financial, executive and administrative powers.
Tynsong said 50-60% of the agreement’s aspirations have already been met.
He said the implementation of the agreement is pending due to the need for the 125th amendment to the Constitution of India, which is under consideration in the parliament.
“This is with the government of India as well as in the parliament, as they have already introduced it in the Rajya Sabha, and then the Rajya Sabha has referred it to the parliamentary standing committee..
Since additional subjects need to be transferred to the ADCs, this has to be amended in the parliament.”
Tynsong also announced the government’s decision to appoint a dedicated nodal officer to coordinate between the government, ANVC & ANVC.B, and the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) to facilitate the implementation of the agreement.
“The nodal officer will play a crucial role in ensuring that the agreement is implemented clause by clause and point by point, and will meet with ANVC & ANVC.B members regularly at Tura.”
He said the meeting discussed various developmental projects like road construction, forest preservation, and cultural initiatives, such as auditoriums, libraries, and cultural centers.
“The members of the ANVC and ANVC.B are still not satisfied, but in the meeting today, we have decided that we will closely monitor and see that those subjects mentioned in the Agreed Text for Settlement are fully complied with by the state government,” Tynsong said.
The funds for implementing the Garo Accord will partly come from the Centre and partly from the State government.
The deputy chief minister also said that the government has cleared the surrender package for over 500 ANVC and ANVC.B members, with each member being entitled to Rs 1.50 lakh and a monthly stipend of Rs 3,500 for six months.
“The Agreed Text Agreement is 95% more or less about development. With development, I am very sure the kind of thinking to regroup will no longer be there,” he said.
Tynsong said that the government has assured that meetings will be held regularly, at least quarterly, to monitor progress and address outstanding issues.
Tynsong said, “We discussed a lot about the district council. The Agreed Text of Settlement says that the government should further strengthen the ADCs and the ADCs should again have more responsibilities in preserving the indigenous people, and not only that, even the function of the ADC should be further strengthened. Therefore, it links to the amendment of the Sixth Schedule.”
“Once the amendment is made, then only we will be able to further proceed forward in meeting those aspirations reflected in the agreed settlement,” he said.
