Shillong MP urges Centre to implement ILP in Meghalaya

Shillong, Dec 16 (PTI) Shillong MP Ricky AJ Syngkon on Tuesday urged the Centre to extend the Inner Line Permit (ILP) regime to Meghalaya, citing demographic vulnerability and the need to strengthen border management in the tribal-majority hill state.

In a letter to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Syngkon recalled that the Meghalaya assembly had unanimously adopted a resolution on December 19, 2019, seeking the extension of ILP to the state under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873.

He said the rare all-party consensus reflected deep and long-standing concerns across society over the "unregulated influx and its impact on indigenous communities".

He said that despite repeated representations by successive state governments and civil society groups, the absence of a final decision had sustained public anxiety in Meghalaya.

Syngkon said the demand was in line with the constitutional framework for tribal areas under the Sixth Schedule, noting that ILP is already in place in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur, intending to regulate inward movement and prevent unregulated settlement.

Extending ILP to Meghalaya, he said, would bring the state in line with similarly placed Northeastern states.

He urged the Centre to either approve ILP or lay down a clear, time-bound roadmap for consideration. PTI JOP SOM