Nagaland MLA asserts ownership of Merapani seed farm amid encroachment row

Kohima, April 18: Amid rising tensions over alleged encroachments on the Merapani Seed Farm, Nagaland MLA and Naga People's Front (NPF) legislator Achumbemo Kikon visited the contested land recently to assess the ground situation and assert the state's ownership over the property.

The 1,300-acre seed farm, located along the sensitive Nagaland-Assam border in Golaghat, has recently become a flashpoint, with reports of immigrants and labourers staking claims of tenancy and ownership. The incident has triggered alarm among the local population, border authorities, and political leadership.

Reaffirming the Government of Nagaland’s undisputed ownership over the seed farm, Kikon strongly rejected any counterclaims made by individuals from neighbouring Assam. “This land belongs solely to the Government of Nagaland. Illegal immigrants or tenants have no rightful claim over it,” he declared.

Kikon stressed that the Merapani Seed Farm has long been a state-owned asset meant for agricultural advancement and must be preserved as such. “Let there be no confusion — this land was acquired and maintained by Nagaland for the development of agriculture. Any encroachment is an infringement on our territorial and sovereign rights,” he said.

Calling the current encroachments a serious breach, the MLA demanded the cancellation of all permits and leases issued to any individual, regardless of their origin. He also urged the Department of Agriculture to immediately reclaim the land and transform it into a vital agricultural production centre — a potential “rice bowl” for the state.

To safeguard the area from further illegal occupation, Kikon proposed that the entire seed farm be fenced and brought under stricter surveillance. “We must protect what is rightfully ours,” he stated, underlining the significance of the land for Nagaland’s agricultural future and sovereignty.

The MLA was accompanied by representatives from the Lotha Lower Range Public Organisation (LLRPO), Lotha Lower Range Students’ Union (LLRSU), the 7th Nagaland Armed Police, local police personnel, and the Border Magistrate, reinforcing community and administrative support for his assertions.

The visit and Kikon’s bold remarks have reignited discussions on border land management and are likely to influence further administrative action in the days to come.

Earlier this month, tensions intensified along the Assam-Nagaland border in Golaghat district as over 1,000 farmers at the Merapani Bholaguri seed farm staged a massive protest against the Nagaland government’s directive to cease seed farming activities and vacate the land. The move, reportedly aimed at facilitating oil palm cultivation, provoked widespread outrage among local farmers, many of whom claimed to have cultivated the land for over five decades.

Despite falling within Assam’s Golaghat district, the 1,200-acre seed farm lies in the disputed Merapani region, long claimed by Nagaland and currently under consideration by the Supreme Court of India. The directive was perceived by many as a calculated assertion of territorial control under the guise of agricultural development.