Assam CM: Only a government with strong willpower can deal with encroachment

 1.20 lakh bighas of land freed of encroachment

 29.27 lakh bighas of forest land still encroached on

 Encroachment has turned into demographic invasion

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma says that carrying out eviction drives against encroachers in the state is a huge task and a continuous fight against this menace is required. The answer to this problem is a government with a strong willpower and uncompromising attitude, he said.

Speaking to the media on Tuesday, the CM said that the encroachments are not only destroying forests but also leading to a demographic invasion. This demographic invasion has already affected Lower Assam and is now taking root in Upper Assam. If this is not nipped in the bud, this will make a certain community the deciding factor in many Upper Assam constituencies in the next 20 years.

The CM also said that in the past 4 years, the Assam government has made around 1.20 lakh bighas of land, including forest and other lands, free from encroachment. Around 63 lakh bighas of land are still under encroachment, and 29.27 lakh bighas of this are forest land. He stressed that a huge part of the encroached forest lands is yet to be made encroachment-free. Encroachment of lands has now become a huge problem for the people of the state due to the lackadaisical attitude of previous governments.

The CM gave the example of forest land in Uriamghat in the Golaghat district, which has now become the target of encroachers. Eviction drives will be carried out in this area as well, but it will take some time, he said. Before conducting eviction drives, several steps have to be taken, including taking the court’s permission. The courts have to be convinced with evidence of forest lands being encroached. Then only the courts give permission for eviction, he maintained. “The encroachers belong to a certain religious community. So, we not only have to protect the forests but also the people from the impending demographic change,” he said.

The Chief Minister stated that the state government is now making certain that new encroachments do not take place. Also, it has emerged that encroachers are getting their names included in voter lists of the place they have encroached on, along with their names already in the voter list of the place they originate from. This dual inclusion of names in voter lists will not be allowed, and their names will be removed from the list of the area they have now encroached on. “This will be a long battle, and our job is to save the indigenous LACs,” he said.

“Our intention is not to hand over the lands freed from encroachment to businessmen, as alleged by a section of people. We want the forest cover to return, along with the wildlife. We have seen that wildlife has returned to places like Burhachapori, Orang, etc., after eviction drives were conducted there. A section of people are trying to demoralise us, but we will not halt the eviction drives,” he stressed.

The CM informed that, since 2021, the state government has made encroachment-free 84,743 bighas of forest land, national parks, and wildlife sanctuaries; 3,643 bighas of VGR-PGR lands; 26,713 bighas of khas land; and 4,449 bighas of land belonging to xatras and other religious institutions.

Also Read: Assam Encroachment: Lack of Timely Action Fuels Never-Ending Saga

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