Published Paper Details:

The state-making process is often blamed for the ongoing inter-state border disputes in India's northeast. The colonial demarcation and re-demarcation of borders left persisting legacies of border plurality and inconsistencies in the region. Post-colonial reorganisation of states was followed by border disagreements between Assam and its four adjoining states of Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, and Meghalaya. The territorial claims of these states beyond their constitutional borders apparently have historical roots, particularly in the state-making exercise in the region. Since the outset of these disputes, the post-colonial federal constitution has attempted to address the problem by applying different settlement mechanisms. This study thus makes a retrospective analysis to understand how state-making practices since colonial rule have contributed to the current border discord and also attempts to understand available constitutional mechanisms for resolving the issue.