KOKRAJHAR: The Bodo National Students Union (BONSU) expresses its strong support for the recent actions taken by the Government of Assam to address illegal encroachment in the tribal belt and block areas of Sonapur and at the same time they also urged the government of Assam to start the eviction drive in BTC area as well.
In a statement, the spokesperson of BONSU Hem Chandra Brahma said the encroachment crisis affected over 5 lakhs bighas of land across the 47 designated tribal belts and blocks, which comprise 30 blocks and 17 belts. Alarmingly, a total of 85,80,342 bighas of tribal belts and blocks are at risk due to illegal occupation.
This pressing issue has been previously highlighted by the Gauhati High Court, which issued an eviction order in a public interest litigation (PIL 78/2012) filed by Prodyut Kumar Borah, urging state authorities to act decisively to protect these tribal lands but despite the court’s directives and the long-standing protection provided by the Assam Land and Revenue Regulation Act, 1886-designed to safeguard tribal land from encroachment-the Assam government and the current Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) government have repeatedly failed to uphold these protections, he said adding that they find it unacceptable that the state has not acted on the High Court’s 2019 order to evict non-protected illegal encroachers from the tribal belts and blocks of BTC.
Brahma said the historical amendments brought forth by the tribal leaders such as Bhimbar Deuri and Rupnath Brahma in 1949 were vital in protecting tribal lands. It is essential that the current government honours this legacy and takes immediate action against illegal encroachment, he added. They also called upon all the political parties and social organizations in Assam to refrain from politicizing this sensitive issue. The cabinet decision taken on July 7, 2021, allowing non-tribal residents to occupy tribal belt and block areas must be reviewed and repealed immediately, he said, adding that the policy represents a systematic mechanism of land aggression that undermines the rights of tribal communities. Additionally, they urged the Assam government to repeal the Assam State Capital Region Development Authority (ASCRDA) Act of 2017 as this act threatens the integrity of tribal belts and blocks by facilitating land grabs under various government schemes.
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