Guwahati, April 20 : Chief Ministers of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh on Wednesday for the first time held formal talks on solving the long pending inter-state boundary dispute. A chief minister-level border talk between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh was held in Guwahati. Chief ministers of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh – Himanta Biswa Sarma and Pema Khandu sat for the crucial round of negotiations “to resolve the boundary disputes between the two states”. The meeting discussed measures to be adopted to resolve the boundary disputes between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. “We decided to form district-level committees in both the states to resolve the issue in a time-bound manner,” said Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma after the meeting. The district-level committees, which will be formed in both Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, would “undertake joint surveys in disputed areas”. “The district committees will undertake joint surveys in the disputed areas to find tangible solutions to the long-pending issue based on historical perspective, ethnicity, contiguity, people’s will and administrative convenience of both the states,” Sarma added. “We have also finalised the terms of reference of the committees,” Sarma further said. Meanwhile, Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu said that the border meeting with his Assam counterpart was ‘fruitful’. “The positive enthusiasm for resolution on both sides is very encouraging,” added Khandu. ABI KK ARN