A CORRESPONDENT
LAKHIMPUR: The Lakhimpur district administration conducted an eviction drive on Tuesday in order to remove the illegal encroachers upon the bank of the Gariajan which is flowing through North Lakhimpur town, the district headquarters of Lakhimpur town. The eviction drive was conducted in association with the North Lakhimpur Municipal Board (NLMB) at a four hundred meter stretch on the east bank of the water body on the left side of NH-15.
The Gariajan has played a major role with regard to discharging the water from North Lakhimpur town. The water body, with its around fifty meter wide basin, has covered almost a four kilometre long area of the town in its course. But the area of the water body, with regard to its width, is shrinking gradually due to the aggression of a section of local people, commercial institutions and doubtful people. As a result of it, the water body has lost its water discharging capacity causing artificial flood in a large area of the town. Under such circumstances, various organizations of the district has demanded the district administration to remove the illegal encroachers.
Further, Swachh Bharat Mission Lakhimpur District Brand Ambassador Ranjit Kakati also suggested the district administration and the NLMB to evict the illegal encroachers, to clean the water body and to beautify its both banks by submitting a charter of eight demands regarding various burning issues of the town. At present, the water body has become extremely polluted due to dumping of plastic wastages and other garbage by a section of local people and commercial institutions.
The eviction drive was conducted in the presence of Circle Officer (CO) of North Lakhimpur Revenue Circle— Minakshi Permey, Assistant Commissioner-cum-Chief Executive Officer of the NLMB—Casio Karan Pegu and Officer-in-Charge of North Lakhimpur Police Station. While talking to this correspondent, the CO said that the district administration would evict the illegal encroachers upon the bank of the water body of the government land step by step in the upcoming days.
However, a section of nature lovers and conscious people expressed resentment against the district administration over act of rooting out of the big trees and collapsing the vegetation of the evicted area in the name of the eviction. While attention was drawn to this issue, the CO informed this correspondent that a scheme for the construction a walking zone and beautification of the bank of the water body under Comprehensive Infrastructural Development Fund (CIDF) alloted to Lakhimpur would be implemented very soon and so the area had been cleaned.
She further informed that notice had been served to the illegal dwellers on the bank of the water body to vacate their dwelling places within seven to ten days. In this connection, a section of people alleged that the district administration ordered them to vacate their dwelling places only with oral instructions without serving any notice in black and white. They expressed resentment over this issue.
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