The Mizoram Cabinet on Wednesday reaffirmed its opposition to the Centre’s proposal to fence the Indo-Myanmar border, even as it acknowledged that the state government has no legal authority to prevent the move.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the council of ministers chaired by Chief Minister Lalduhoma, which reiterated the state’s long-held position against erecting a fence along the 510-km-long Mizoram sector of the international border with Myanmar.
“The cabinet maintains that the state government stands by its original position. However, as border fencing is a Union subject, the state government does not have the power to oppose it,” a government representative said after the meeting.
The Cabinet’s reiteration follows a resolution unanimously adopted by the Mizoram Legislative Assembly in February last year opposing both the Centre’s plan to fence the border and its proposal to scrap the Free Movement Regime (FMR) with Myanmar. The FMR allows people living along the frontier to cross the border for social and cultural purposes.
Mizoram’s position comes amid sustained pressure from influential civil society organisations, which argue that fencing the border would disrupt deep-rooted ethnic, cultural and familial ties between communities living on both sides.
Also read: Mizo students urge Centre to reconsider border-fencing issues
On January 16, the state’s apex students’ body, the Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP), along with the Zo Reunification Organisation (ZORO), submitted a joint memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterating their opposition to the Centre’s plan. The organisations warned that fencing would lead to severe physical and psychological separation of ethnic Mizo communities divided by the international boundary.
Leaders of the Central Young Mizo Association (CYMA) also conveyed similar concerns during a meeting with Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan in New Delhi in January, reiterating that the proposal could undermine long-standing social cohesion in the border areas.
Six districts of Mizoram share a 510-km-long border with Myanmar’s Chin state. The Mizos of India and the Chins of Myanmar share close ethnic and cultural ties, with families often residing on both sides of the border.
The issue has acquired added sensitivity following the political crisis in Myanmar. More than 30,000 people from Chin state, displaced by the military coup in 2021, are currently taking shelter in Mizoram, with the state government and civil society groups extending humanitarian support.
While the state government continues to voice its opposition, it has also acknowledged constitutional limitations, as border management and fencing fall under the Centre’s jurisdiction. The Cabinet’s stance reflects an attempt to balance constitutional realities with local sentiment and ethnic considerations in one of India’s most sensitive frontier regions.
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