Karbi Anglong Agreement

India is a vast country with a great variety and diversity in languages, cultures, etc. Each part of India follows different cultures and has different beliefs. Unit diversity can be observed in India. However, when such diversity exists in any country, the smooth co-existence of all cultures and their relations with the government should be maintained. Certain agreements should be made to maintain peace. The Karbi Anglong agreement is between the insurgent groups of Assam, the state government of Assam, and the Central government.

Let us take a look at the Karbi Anglong agreement.

Karbi Anglong district

First, let us learn about the Karbi Anglong district before diving into the Karbi Anglong agreement. Assam is a comparatively small state in northeast India. Assam consists of 34 administrative districts. The Karbi Anglong district is one of the 34 districts of Assam.

The headquarters of the Karbi Anglong district in Diphu. The sixth schedule of the Indian Constitution declares that the Karbi district should be administered by the 

Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council. About 40% of this district is covered with forest. Illegal mining in this area is leading to deforestation and ecological disturbance.

The Karbi Anglong was among the 250 most backward districts out of 640 in India.

Such is the Karbi Anglong district. Now let us learn about the Karbi Anglong agreement.

The need for the Karbi Anglong agreement

The Karbi Anglong agreement or the Karbi agreement is between three parties given below.

• The central Government of India.
• The State Government of Assam.
• Five insurgent groups of Assam.

The Karbi Anglong is the largest district of Assam, and many tribal groups and ethnicities co-exist in this region. They include Karbi, Bodo, Hmar, Garo, Kuki, etc. The existence of so many different cultural groups led to an uprising in the district, which did not allow this area to develop. The Karbis are the major militant group of Assam whose history has been marked by violence, killings, abductions, etc. Various revolting groups in the Karbi Anglong district, like the  PDCK and KLNLF. These groups have emerged due to the demand of Karbis to form a separate district. Such uprising from the Karbis and their revolting groups gave rise to the need for the Karbi Anglong agreement.

Karbi Anglong agreement

The following are the major terms of the Karbi Anglong agreement.

• Surrender of Karbis: The five major militant organisations of the state laid down their arms and surrendered. More than 1000 armed Karbis gave up practising violence. 

• Special development package:

The Central government has allocated package of about 1000 crore rupees for the development of this region. This money will go to the state government of Assam, which will use this fund for special developmental projects in the Karbi areas. 

• Enhanced Autonomy to KAAC:

The Karbi Anglong Autonomous council will have more autonomy in exercising its rights. It is on the condition that it does not affect the administrative or territorial integrity of the state of Assam. This results in the KAAC being granted more executive, legislative, financial and administrative powers.

• Rehabilitation:

The armed groups of the Karbis would be rehabilitated, and the amenities would be provided to them to develop themselves.

• Karbi Welfare council: The Karbi Welfare council will be set up by the state government of Assam. This council will focus on developing the Karbi people who do not live in the KAAC region.

• The protection of The Identity culture and the languages of the Karbi people will be ensured with this agreement.

• The resources will be provided to the Karbi Anglong Autonomous council by making amendments to the state’s consolidated fund.

The Central Government will provide financial compensation of Rs 5 Lakhs for two families of the Karbi people who lost their lives in the protest related to autonomous state demand. The chief minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, considered this a historical movement and commented, “Now lower Assam has been turned into a peaceful area. Now we will sign an agreement with the Karbi Anglong group, which is also a historic moment.”

The chief minister of Assam also ensures that the government of Assam will be taking every step to ensure the successful execution of this agreement.

Conclusion:

In a culturally diverse region, agreements should be made to ensure the peaceful co-existence of various ethnic groups. The Karbi Anglong agreement is one such agreement between the Central Government, State Government and the Karbi ethnic group. This agreement has ended the decades-long history of violence in Assam and brought peace. Around 1000 armed Karbis surrendered as part of this agreement. More power was granted to the KAAC. The central government will provide a special development package of about 1000 crore rupees to develop the Karbi areas.