Naga talks soon, in a third country

‘‘Only the date and venue needs to be fixed. Both the NSCN (I-M) leaders are travelling now. It will happen soon,’’ a Home Ministry official said .

‘‘The current situation in the state after the implementation of the ceasefire was discussed, as also the progress of negotiations held so far with the NSCN (I-M),’’ according to an official statement after a two-hour meeting at North Block.

‘‘The meeting also discussed the charter of demands submitted by the Naga group and it was, thereafter, decided that the negotiations should be continued further,’’ the statement added.

Among those who attended the meeting were National Security Advisor J.N. Dixit, Army Chief General N.C Vij, Padmanabhaiah, Foreign Secretary Shashank, Home Secretary Anil Baijal, Director Intelligence Bureau K.P. Singh, RAW Chief C.D. Sahay and other senior officials from the Home Ministry and the Army.

According to sources, the meeting also discussed the insurgent group’s controversial demand for ‘‘Greater Nagaland’’ — incorporating Naga dominated areas of the neighbouring states, including Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur. The UPA government had stated in its common minimum programme that it was committed to maintain territorial sovereignty of the states, especially in the North-East.

The meeting also discussed the recent incidents, including forcing some Deputy Commissioners to part with money meant for development purposes. The Army Chief provided the inputs on the latest ground situation in the state.

The Centre and the NSCN (I-M) had entered into a ceasefire agreement in 1997 and the two sides have since held several rounds of talks in various countries including Switzerland, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Thailand, Japan and Malaysia.