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KOKRAJHAR: Bodoland Janajati Suraksha Mancha (BJSM) which is opposing the allotment of land measuring 3,600 bighas to Adani group in Bashbari area of Kokrajhar district to set up Thermal power plant, said no local people can expect benefit from big industries other than giving them tribal lands.
Talking to a section of local media, the working president of BJSM DD Narzary said the government of BTR has decided to allot 3,600 bighas of land to Adani group in Bashbari area to set up Thermal power project. He said local tribal people have vehemently opposed the allotment of land but despite this opposition the council government and cabinet minister UG Brahma have been trying to mislead the local villagers with false promises of job and other benefits. He said Bashbari area had been predominantly inhabited by Bodo, Rabha and other tribal people and many of their villages would be evicted if the power project is set up.
According to the rule of land in BTC, the tribal land cannot be transferred or allotted to non-tribal people of outside but the government of BTR has decided to allot over 3000 bighas of land to Adani group for setting up power project which is clear violation of land rule and act, Narzary said adding that the CEM of BTR had no right to allot or sell tribal lands to non-tribal outsiders for his interest and no tribal people will allow to grab tribal land with pretext of setting up big industries from which the local people will not get desired benefits other than losing their perennial lands.
Referring to the setting up of NTPC at Salakati in Kokrajhar district and Bongaigaon Refinery (BGR) at Dhaligaon in Chirang district, Narzary said several thousands of bighas of tribal lands belonging to Bodo tribal people have gone to these big industries but benefits to local people are not as expected. He said the NTPC has engaged labourers from West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha and other states but only a few local people have been engaged while, taking the advantage, the surrounding areas of NTPC and BGR have been occupied by suspected nationalities thereby posing threat to social and economic security of local people. He also said Adani group will bring labourers from outside states and job will go to other people from different states in his thermal power project in Bashbari. He also said there would not be any guarantee for the local villagers to get job and other benefits. Local people should not succumbed to the false promises of government of BTR and cabinet minister. They will not be able to correct their wrong doings in future. He further said the government of Assam and BTR, despite Gauhati High Court’s order to evict all illegal settlers in tribal lands had miserably failed to carry out eviction drives against them but going to allot thousands of bighas of tribal land which is not at all justified. The BJSM leader said the Adani group and other private companies were is race to occupy lands in tribal areas and subsequently bring men power from different states which is the trend of the day. He called upon all tribal people of the state to stand together against the systematic aggression of tribal lands.
Narzary cited the example of one Sanjan Pal, a businessman of Kokrajhar town who has been trying to grab plot of land allotted to All Assam Tribal Sangha (AATS) for construction of office of the AATS-cum-Tribal Rest House at Pattarghat in Kokrajhar town. He said the non-tribal businessman from outside had been in challenging attitude with the government of BTR to take over the plot of land by illegal means as he has reportedly been encouraging thieves to steal the properties of Tribal Sangha from the ongoing construction site and huge iron materials including tin sheets, iron grill, wooden frame and railing rods have been recovered from his camp in a plot of his land attached to the AATS office construction site. The police is failing to take action against Pal despite stored stolen materials are recovered from his plot of land. He also said Pal was just an example that non-tribal outsiders have intention of occupying tribal lands. It’s a matter of shame that the government of BTR is failing to ask the district and police administration to take appropriate action on Sanjan Pal for damaging and stealing the properties of AATS besides repeated attempts to grab the plot of land applying illegal means.
Meanwhile, talking to The Sentinel, a leader of the UPPL (name withheld) said the BJSM and opposition party of BTC had been silent on the illegal settlements of suspected Bangladeshis under Bogribari police station. He said the BPF and their company had been silent over illegal occupation of several thousands of bighas of land in that particular area itself but they are talking big against the setting up of thermal power project in Bashbari. He also said the BJSM and the opposition party should focus on illegal settlers in Bogribari and other areas by suspected nationalities if they are really serious about protection of tribal lands. Why the BJSM has been silent in the last seventeen years of Hagrama Mohilary ruled BTC during which the suspected nationalities came in large number and settled there?
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