Pro-ILP groups seeks to give EBFR Act more teeth

Pro-Inner Line Permit (ILP) groups today decided to submit a representation to the Meghalaya government including certain points in the 140-year-old Eastern Bengal Frontier Regulation Act 1873 to give more teeth to deal with influx.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the pressure groups Khasi Students' Union (KSU), Federation Khasi Jaintia and Garo People (FKJGP), Hynniewtrep National Youth Front (HNYF), Jaintia Youth Federation (JYF), Jaintia Students' Union (JSU) and others here.
"We will be submitting other points to be incorporated in the EBFR Act to ensure that besides the Inner Line Permit, the incorporated points will give it more teeth to deal with influx," FKJGP president Joe Marwein told reporters after the meeting.

"The points to be proposed in the ILP will not hamper the growth and development of the state, a concern which the government had earlier expressed," he said.
KSU president Daniel Khyriem said, "The points we are proposing is to give more teeth to the ILP which will further prevent the inflow of illegal influx into the state."
HNYF general secretary Sadon K Blah said that the points were wholly in context of the ILP which would suit local conditions of the state.

Earlier, the NGOs had alleged that the 52 existing laws in the state were not effective enough to tackle the core issue of influx.

Following the January 15 meeting, the state government and the NGOs decided to study the 52 existing laws in order to come up with a comprehensive mechanism to address the problem.
The state government had said that bringing amendment to the ILP would required the Centre's approval.