Major Eviction Drive In Assam's Goalpara, Evicts 1,080 Families From Forest Land
Amid the protest of those being evicted, the state administration said that drive was primarily to curb human-elephant conflict and restore ecological balance in the area
Guwahati: The Assam government on Saturday launched a massive eviction drive to evict 1080 families allegedly encroaching upon about 140 hectares of forest land in the Paikan Reserve Forest in Western Assam’s Goalpara district.
Amid the protest of those being evicted, the state administration said that drive was primarily to curb human-elephant conflict and restore ecological balance in the area.
In order to maintain law and order during the eviction drive, joint teams of the Forest Department and Assam Police have been conducting intensive patrolling, making public announcements via loudspeakers, and urging illegal occupants to leave the area peacefully.
Heavy deployment of police personnel, along with bulldozers, excavators, and senior officials, was in place to ensure the drive was conducted without disruption.
The administration has also made it clear that the eviction is part of a larger conservation effort to protect the forest's ecological integrity and wildlife corridors.
The eviction drive, which was scheduled to be carried out on Friday, was postponed by a day, keeping in mind the Friday prayers in the Muslim-majority area.
Goalpara Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Tejas Mariswamy said that the eviction drive was aimed at to clear encroachment on around 135 hectares in the Paikan Reserve Forest of the Krishnai Range.
"There are 1,080 families who have encroached on forest land, and we had asked them to vacate the area in November-December last year. We again served them notices last month to vacate the area by July 10," he said. Since 2023, the administration has cleared encroachments on 650 hectares of land across four forest ranges.
The Congress, however, has criticised the eviction drives, and asserted that all Indian citizens, who have been evicted from land during the BJP rule, will be compensated if the opposition party comes to power in the state.
The legislators of AIUDF and several minority students organisations took out protest marches in and around the Goalpara district opposing the eviction drive of the government. The minority organisations alleged that BJP was targeting Muslim citizens deliberately.