Kohima: The Nagaland Legislative Assembly on Thursday passed the Frontier Nagaland Territorial Authority (FNTA) Bill, 2026, paving the way for the creation of an autonomous authority for six districts in eastern Nagaland.
The Bill, as amended and adopted by the House, provides for a 62-member Frontier Nagaland Territorial Authority with legislative, executive, administrative and financial powers over 46 subjects across Tuensang, Mon, Longleng, Kiphire, Noklak and Shamator districts.
Deputy Chief Minister Yanthungo Patton moved an amendment to the Bill during its consideration and adoption in the Assembly.
The amendment relates to the preamble of the legislation. It seeks to omit the words “as per the provisions of this Act” from the second paragraph of the preamble, following the phrase “in order to uphold the autonomy of FNTA” and before the words “and to provide for democratic”.
The amendment was adopted by the House before the Bill was passed.
The FNTA is envisaged as a mechanism to strengthen local governance and development planning in the six districts of eastern Nagaland, while remaining within the constitutional and legal framework of the state and the country.
The legislation follows the Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) signed on February 5, 2026, between the Government of India, the Government of Nagaland and the Eastern Nagaland Peoples’ Organisation (ENPO).
The agreement was aimed at addressing the longstanding socio-economic and developmental concerns of the eastern Nagaland region and providing an institutional framework for greater participation in governance and development.
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The Bill was re-introduced in the Nagaland Legislative Assembly on September 1, the first day of the ninth session of the 14th Nagaland Legislative Assembly, after the earlier version, which had been deferred after being tabled in March, was withdrawn earlier that day.
With its passage, the state government is expected to move towards operationalising the FNTA in accordance with the provisions of the legislation and the commitments made under the February 5 MoA.
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