Tribal Bodies Reiterate Demand for Eviction Drive Against Encroachers in BTR

OUR CORRESPONDENT

KOKRAJHAR: As the illegal encroachments in tribal belts and blocks and reserve forests in BTR draw serious concern, different tribal bodies have been continuing to put pressure on the Government of Assam and BTC to start the eviction drive against illegal encroachers with immediate effect, failing which the tribal organisations have warned that there will be a strong mass movement in the region against the encroachers.

A delegation of the BTC Coordination Committee of the All Assam Tribal Sangha (AATS) led by its president Niranjan Brahma on Tuesday submitted a memorandum to the Chief of BTC, Hagrama Mohilary, demanding an eviction drive against the illegal encroachers at the earliest. On May 25, a memorandum was also submitted to the chief minister of Assam through the DC of Kokrajhar, jointly by the Bodoland Janajati Suraksha Manch (BJSM) and the All Assam Tribal Students Union (AATSU), demanding that the eviction drive against the non-tribal communities from the tribal belts and blocks, national parks, and reserve forests be carried out as early as possible. They demanded that the government take timely action against the encroachers, as the Gauhati High Court had already issued an order for eviction to the DCs and the BTC Principal Secretary in 2019.

Talking to mediapersons at the BTC Secretariat gate, the President of the BTC Coordination Committee of AATS, Niranjan Brahma, said that the illegal encroachments in tribal belts and blocks and reserve forests had crossed the limit, and that the time had come to take action on them. He said that over 4.5 lakh bighas of land in tribal belts and blocks have been encroached by non-tribal people.

Also Read: Assam Indigenous Kachari Body Seeks Eviction of Illegal Encroachers, Land Rights and Tribal Chief Minister