Demand for Union Territory status for Barak Valley

SILCHAR, July 8: The Barak Valley Union Territory Demand Committee has reiterated its demand for a separate Territorial status of Barak Valley. The committee on Tuesday submitted a memorandum to the Cachar Deputy Commissioner in his office addressing the Union Home Minister demanding the incorporation of Barak Valley as a Union Territory.

It was clearly stated in the memorandum that the current appeal if neglected shall open broader ways of sacrifices for the fulfilment of this particular objective. It has been stated that last year, on February 18, a memorandum to this effect was submitted to the Centre during the re-orientation of the State programme where new States had been created in India. But the demand to incorporate the Valley as a Union Territory was not considered.

Whereas, since independence, the demand to consider undivided Cachar as Purbanchal existed and though new States came to be formed surrounding Barak Valley since then, the demand for the inclusion of Barak Valley as a Union Territory remained unheard of. The demand of separate Statehood for Barak Valley first rose in 1948.

In 1967, before Meghalaya was formed, the demand for Union Territory status for Barak Valley came up. In 1972, the committee for the formation of Union Territory met the then Union Human Minister KC Panth, who promised to consider the case. But later, no steps concerning the issue came up.

Currently, the committee to fulfil its demand has given a clarion call of mass convention on August 9 during which future working procedure of the Demand Committee would be determined. The memorandum was signed by committee president Paritosh Pal Chowdhury, Haric Ali Mazumder, Bibhash Chakrabartty, Pandital Das, Nirjhar Das Tajuddin Lashkar and Manish Das on behalf of the Union Territory Demand Committee. (Source - Sentinel)