Aizawl : Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma over the phone on Thursday, assuring him that the Centre would approve an MoU to relocate the Assam Rifles’ base from Aizawl to a designated location within a week, according to an official statement issued here.

The draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Mizoram government and Assam Rifles to shift the paramilitary force’s base to Zokhawsang on the eastern outskirts of the state capital was referred to the Centre last year.

“Union Home Minister Amit Shah informed Chief Minister Lalduhoma over the phone on Thursday that the Home Ministry will clear the MoU within a week,” the official statement said.

Lalduhoma had earlier said that Shah would visit Mizoram in August to inspect the steps taken for the relocation of Assam Rifles’ base from the heart of Aizawl to Zokhawsang.

The Assam Rifles battalion headquarters at Zokhawsang was inaugurated by the Union home minister on April 1 last year.    

According to the statement, Shah also told the chief minister that the Centre would provide financial assistance to the people affected by cyclone ‘Remal’ and relief to the refugees taking shelter in the state.