Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, Oct 31: The third meeting of the Joint High Power Committee (JHPC) on Permanent Resident Certificate (PRC), which was held here on Wednesday, ended without making any headway into the issue.
Addressing the meeting, Chairman of the JHPC, Nabam Rebia stressed the need for visiting the areas concerned for gathering more suggestions, views and opinions from all the stakeholders on the issue before making recommendation and submission of the final report.
“We have to deliver our good suggestion and view in the interest and welfare of all tribes and communities of the state without hurting anyone’s sentiment,” Rebia, who also is the Land Management, Forest and Environment Minister, said.
“We have already had two sittings. We have to visit Vijayanagar, Tezu and Changlang, along with all the committee members, and all need to submit their views, suggestions and opinions,” Rebia said.
Deputy Commissioner of Lohit, Papum Pare, representatives from AAPSU, ANSU, APPDSU, ACDSU, ADCs of Namsai, Changlang, and Balijan also attended the meeting.
A memorandum was also submitted by the Mikir Welfare Society to the committee demanding PRC, which they claim to have availed earlier.
The matter was also discussed in the meeting.
“We had a good discussion today,” Rebia said while talking to reporters.
He lamented that many members, especially from different political parties did not turn up for the meeting. He urged all to take part in such important meetings.
“It is a matter of concern for all those non-APSTs, who are residing in the state,” he said while clarifying that discussion is for PRC only but not ST certificate.
“Today’s meeting was very positive and the members have placed their views and opinion,” said Member of Parliament Ninong Ering.
All Arunachal Pradesh Students Union (AAPSU) president Hawa Bagang, while talking to media persons said that “there was no solution today.”
“We had a threadbare discussion on the issue. We demanded to frame law to solve the PRC issue. We have no objection to anybody’s claim/demand. But we can never compromise with the rights of the indigenous people of the state,” he said.
The AAPSU leader said that the JHPC chairman had suggested the students’ union teams headed by AAPSU to have separate sittings with all the affected area students’ unions and community students’ unions, and to have a discussion in the next sitting.
