Fresh clash erupts along Assam-Arunachal border

A fresh clash erupted between protesters from Assam and Arunachal Pradesh in Dhemaji district on Thursday, forcing the police from the neighbouring state to fire in the air to control the mob even as the indefinite economic blockade against the Himalayan state entered its second day. The Takam Mising Porin Kebang (TMPK), the apex student organisation of Assam's Mising community, and other local groups on Wednesday launched an indefinite economic blockade against Arunachal Pradesh in protest against the alleged firing in which 12 indigenous people from Assam were injured. 
"When the blockade was going on, some people from Arunachal Pradesh indulged in stone pelting on protesters from Assam, and some persons sustained minor injuries. This led to a scuffle between the two sides," an official said.
The incident took place at the Likabali entry point in Silapathar in Dhemaji district of Assam, he added. "Then we saw that police from Arunachal fired three rounds in the air to control the mob on their side," the Assam government official said.
Several people from Assam were injured on Monday following alleged firing by miscreants from Arunachal Pradesh along the inter-state border in Dhemaji district amid a dispute over alleged land encroachment.Protesters have stopped vehicles, except those carrying emergency services and school transport, from entering or leaving Arunachal Pradesh through the border entry points. The organisations are demanding an early resolution to the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border dispute, action against those allegedly involved in the firing and an end to alleged encroachment
on Assam land.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has called for restraint, saying the two states should resolve their remaining differences through dialogue rather than confrontation. He said the incident was painful because Assam and Arunachal Pradesh -- who share an 804.1 km border -- had already made significant progress in resolving their long-pending boundary dispute. According to data shared by the chief minister, 123 areas along the Assam-Arunachal border had initially been identified as areas of dispute or conflict. Of these, 71 areas have now been settled, while 52 areas still remain to be resolved through further discussions between the two states.