Shillong, Oct 15: Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma today failed to give any concrete assurances to the people of Lapangap that they will be able to harvest their paddy following a deadly bout of violence between villagers from Meghalaya and Assam.

Last week one person from the Assam side died in a violent confrontation between the two sides when villagers from the Meghalaya side began harvesting rice along the disputed border.

Asked today whether the villagers will be able to harvest their produce uninterrupted, Sangma said, “It’s a very difficult situation. We cannot guarantee that right now. We’re trying to talk, but only if we get a positive response from across (the border). Let’s try to get over this phase and at least allow people to harvest, but only when we have a mutual agreement

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