Cabinet Minister and Spokesperson in the MDA 2 government, Paul Lyngdoh, on Tuesday said that the Meghalaya government has significantly stepped up its security deployment at Lapangap village in West Jaintia Hills in response to recent tensions near the interstate boundary with Assam.
“Initially, a group of Meghalaya Police of 10 members were immediately rushed to site at Lapangap village. Today we have 30 police personnel, 15 from the first MLP Battalion, 15 from the third MLP Battalion led by the SP of West Jaintia Hills, who are on the ground in the makeshift camp that we have set up at Lapangap,” Lyngdoh stated.
He emphasised that the presence of police has helped stabilise the situation and reassured residents. “So that sense of insecurity has already to a large extent been controlled and we are managing things well, and hopefully this problem will be resolved once we have a discussion at the regional committee level. On the ground as of now of course that sense of fear will always be there, but the fact that police presence has been geared up from 10 in the first two three days to 30 today and the SP is personally overseeing the operations, so that itself is pointed to how serious the government is ensuring the safety of its citizens.”
Lyngdoh further noted that both states are currently operating temporary camps at the disputed site. “As of date both Meghalaya and Assam have temporary campus at the site. Once the boundary issue of that particular sector is resolved at the regional committee level, then we can move having permanent Meghalaya police camp,” he added.
