The eviction drive at Islampur in Bongara under the Azara police station area on the western outskirts of Guwahati entered its second consecutive day on Sunday, with bulldozers continuing to clear illegal structures despite intermittent rain.
The operation, part of the government's ongoing initiative to clear encroached government land across Assam, had begun on Saturday. According to Kamrup (Metro) District Commissioner Swapneel Paul, approximately 60 per cent of the eviction was completed on the first day, with the remainder being carried out on Sunday. Police, Forest Department officials, and civil administration personnel remained deployed throughout.
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Hundreds of families who had been residing in the settlement for years were seen leaving the area as the drive progressed. Many broke down in tears, saying they had no alternative shelter to move to.
The settlement had gradually developed over the years on land falling under the tribal belt and block area in the Bongara region. The administration had previously served eviction notices asking occupants to vacate within 15 days after they failed to produce valid land documents during a public hearing held between October 15 and 22 at the Jalukbari Sub-Divisional Office.
The situation had turned tense on February 27 when officials went to serve eviction notices and were allegedly attacked by a group of unidentified persons who pelted stones. Village Head Mukut Sharma and four police personnel sustained serious injuries, with five individuals taken to the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital for treatment.
Following the incident, police registered a case and arrested 17 men and women under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023. Security was subsequently tightened with police and paramilitary deployment in the area.
Some evicted residents claimed that many families in Islampur and nearby Pachaniyapara had originally been displaced from Simina Futuri in South Kamrup after losing their homes to severe Brahmaputra river erosion. They also alleged that the land had previously been under 'Goria–Moria Myadi patta' before being included in the tribal belt and block area.
DC Swapneel Paul said the administration had acted against those who failed to establish their legal eligibility to reside on tribal belt land.