Tezpur, Jan. 27: Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi, bowing to the demands of the people, today announced that the Dekorai river near Itakhola will be the boundary between Sonitpur and the newly created Biswanath districts.

Gogoi made the announcement this afternoon after protesters from Jamugurihat blocked the national highway near Jiabhorali bridge for about four hours, demanding that three mauzas - Borbhagia, Chilabandha and Murhadol - should not be included in Biswanath district. Protesters burnt tyres on the road and police arrested some of them to clear the road.

The Jiabhorali bridge is about 40km from Tezpur.

The state government created Biswanath district by bifurcating Sonitpur district. Though the three mauzas were included in Biswanath district, the residents want to remain with Sonitpur district.

Because of the protest, the state government finally decided to exclude the three mauzas from Biswanath by making the Dekorai the boundary.

Biswanath, which was declared a police district last year, will have two civil subdivisions - Biswanath and Gohpur - with Biswanath Chariali as its headquarters.