Assam Begins Massive Eviction Drive in Uriamghat Adjoining Border With Nagaland

Though the eviction met with no opposition in the Muslim-majority area evicted on Tuesday, youths residing in the area told reporters, “We have nowhere to go. We will live and die here. Our family settled here in 1973. Those who do not vote here have left with their belongings but those who vote from here have not left. We will go wherever the state government gives us land to resettle.”

The district authorities carrying out the drive said, “The forest department has divided the area into nine blocks and the residents have been given notices to vacate the area in seven days. In preparation for the eviction, more than 1,500 forces including police, commandos and forest protection personnel have been deployed there”

The Assam government, which started the Uriamghat eviction drive after a weeklong planning, had also alerted neighbouring Nagaland about the possible movement of encroachers towards Dimapur.

The Nagaland government has issued an advisory to the bordering districts to keep a strict vigil so that displaced people cannot cross into the state following the eviction drive.

It is significant that the Uriamghat eviction in particular has seen a two-week long campaign, led by chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who referred it as an eye-opener for the state’s people reflecting as to how---Bengali Muslims from Central and Western Assam – where their population is concentrated – moving into Eastern Assam, which the chief minister has been stressing to be protected from “demographic invasion”. The chief minister also released a video showing encroachers converting the forests into widespread betel nut cultivation.

The authorities on Wednesday said that they demolished an illegal betel nut processing factory which was operating on the encroached forest land. They however claimed, “More than 90 percent of the people have already cleared their possessions and left. Apart from Bengali Muslims, 42 Manipuri Muslim and 92 Nepali families have also been asked to evacuate from the area.”