No exploration of oil & natural gas until honourable political settlement: NSCN (IM)

May 4, 2023 36 Views No Comment

Dimapur, May 4 (MExN): The NSCN (IM) today stated that “no exploration of oil and natural gas in Naga territories in any form shall be allowed” until an “honourable political settlement” is reached between the Nagas and Government of India(GoI).

“This is the resolute stand of NSCN,” asserted the NSCN (IM) in statement issued by its MIP, further reminding that the more than two decades back, it has issued standing order that “no mineral wealth in Naga areas will be allowed for exploration and extraction until political settlement is arrived at.”

“This order still stands valid today” and no amount of justification in the name of mobilising financial resources for development will stand to “ride roughshod over the inalienable Naga people’s rights over their land resources,” it added.

According to the NSCN (IM), since the creation of Nagaland State in 1963, the GoI has been eyeing on Nagas’ mineral wealth as the State is endowed with variety of mineral deposits, particularly petroleum.

“But the sticking point is the unresolved political issue that is still hanging fire in the negotiating table for more than 25 years,” it said.

Ironically, this oil issue has come at the time when the GoI is showing no sincerity and commitment to respect the historical and political rights of the Naga people as enshrined in the historic Framework Agreement of August 3, 2015, the NSCN (IM) said.

Accordingly, it charged the GoI of “pulling the Indo-Naga political talks for more than 25 years on flimsy ground of negotiating on the non-negotiable issue of Naga National Flag and Constitution.”

Meanwhile, the NSCN (IM) stated that for over 70 years, Nagas have “stood the test of time to defend the God given rights”

“The 600 million tonnes of oil and natural gas reserves is a blessed wealth of Nagas and no authority will be given the liberty to exploit so long as Government of India continues to handle the Naga political issue with flattering and betraying fashion,” it asserted.

The NSCN further asked the GoI to demonstrate “same degree of political commitment” as it attached to economic significance to Nagaland’s mineral wealth for a “meaningful and credible manner as demanded by the ongoing Indo-Naga political talks.”

“Nagas would not like to stand out as a laughing stock before the world when the Naga political issue after signing the Framework Agreement in 2015 is still made to look like a strange shambling figure,” it maintained.

“Priority has to be set in correct perspective. Until honourable political settlement between the Nagas and Government of India is reached, no exploration of oil and natural gas in Naga territories in any form shall be allowed,” it declared.

The NSCN (IM) statement came after recent media reports that Chief Ministers of Assam and Nagaland have ‘agreed in principle’ for all exploration along the Disturbed Area Belt (DAB) between the two States. Thereafter, several organisations including the WC, NNPGs have came out against the purported agreement.