- Home
- Live Blog
- Breaking News
- Top Headlines
- Cities
- NE News
- Sentinel Media
- Sports
- Education
- Jobs
Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: On the eve of laying down arms at a programme in Guwahati, an elated NDFB-P (Progressive) president Gobinda Basumatary has said that the Bodo Agreement of Settlement is aimed at peace and socio-economic development of both Bodos and non-Bodos living in the Bodo-dominated areas in the State.
As many as 950 cadres of the outfit are going to lay down arms along with cadres of other NDFB factions at a function in Guwahati on Thursday.
Talking to The Sentinel, Gobinda Basumatary said, “After the signing of the Bodo Agreement of Settlement on January 27, a section of non-Bodos are apprehensive of their future. We, however, assure them that we’re going to work as a team for the socio-economic development Bodos and non-Bodos in the proposed region. The agreement is going to benefit not only the Bodos. The non-Bodos and the entire State are going to accrue benefit from it. The development of the Bodos is tantamount to the development of Assam.”
Dispelling doubt on the rumour that with such an agreement signed, the Bodos will get separated from Assam, Basumatary said, “The Bodos have always been part and parcel of Assam. We did raise the demand for a separate state. However, what we’ve got now is more than a State. Some of the benefits we’re supposed to get under the agreement are more adequate than what a State gets.”
On the outfit (NDFB-P) which he has been leading from the front, Basumatary said, “We entered into a ceasefire agreement with the government on May 25, 2005. At the time of signing the ceasefire agreement we had 1,153 cadres lodged in two designated camps – one at Serfanguri in Kokrajhar district and the other at Udalguri. Now we’ve 950 cadres with us. At that time we didn’t lay down arms. We’re going to lay down arms in Guwahari on Thursday.”