10/10/2025
Tara Welfare Society Condemns and Nullifies EKSWCO order on Pakke River Dispute
Itanagar || 10 Oct 2025.
The Tara Welfare Society has strongly condemned and nullified the recent order issued by the East Kameng Social Welfare and Cultural Organisation (EKSWCO) declaring the Diyw Society as the owner of the Pakke River.
In a statement, the Tara Welfare Society clarified that several meetings had been held in the past between the two parties — the Tara Welfare Society and the Beyong alias Diyw Society — but no final resolution could be reached. A mass meeting was also conducted between the two parties in the presence of EKSWCO.
Following these inconclusive meetings, the EKSWCO intervened in the matter to facilitate a settlement and constituted a committee to adjudicate the dispute.
The committee was led by:
1. Shri P.G. Dodum, Principal, Nyibv Nyivgam Yerko (Former ASM & Public Leader)
2. Shri Mechi Effa, Former ASM & Public Leader
3. Shri Nime Dodum, Assistant Professor & Coordinator, CBO, Bameng Block
4. Shri Dokhio Jomeh, Former Vice Chairman, Khadi & Village Industries Board, Govt. of Arunachal Pradesh
5. Shri Bolo Cheda, General Secretary, All East Kameng Gao Bura Welfare Association (Former ASM & Public Leader)
Despite multiple rounds of deliberations, the committee failed to arrive at a mutually agreeable conclusion. Subsequently, the Tara Welfare Society submitted a written application to the EKSWCO withdrawing from the conciliation process, stating that it preferred to resolve the matter directly with the Diyw Society.
However, on July 30, 2025, the committee submitted its preliminary report to the EKSWCO, acknowledging that it could not unilaterally assign exclusive ownership of a natural resource to any single society. The report emphasized that doing so would contradict customary practices and principles of equitable resource governance. It recommended mutual respect and shared stewardship of the river.
Later, the committee withdrew this report and requested the EKSWCO not to treat it as final. A final meeting was then scheduled on August 12, 2025, but the Tara Welfare Society did not attend, citing its earlier withdrawal notice.
Despite this, the committee proceeded to finalize its recommendations based on the meeting held in Tara’s absence. The final report concluded that the claims of the Diyw Welfare Society were “substantiated, credible, and in consonance with established precedent,” while the counter-claims of the Tara Welfare Society were deemed “untenable due to lack of participation and verifiable evidence.”
Committee Recommendations:
1. Diyw Welfare Society be accorded substantive recognition as the owner of the Pakke River from Tago Talo to Kameng Holaing.
2. The claims of the Tara Welfare Society be dismissed due to lack of merit and participation.
3. Diyw Welfare Society shall not restrict members of the Tara Welfare Society from traditional usage of the river for fishing, in accordance with customary practices.
4. Status quo shall be maintained by both societies with respect to shared usage of the river.
5. The authority of EKSWCO as the apex social institution be reaffirmed, and both societies directed to abide by its recommendations.
After the EKSWCO letter, a voice note from a senior member of the Diyw Society went viral, in which he claimed that he had kept the final decision confidential until the official meeting concluded. He further stated that, since it is now official, he was advising members of his society to share the decision widely on social media. This development has raised suspicion within the Tara Welfare Society, which now led TWS believes that the committee and the Beyong alias Diyw Society may have acted in collusion
