The truth behind Assam's population boom

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's statement that the encroachment problem cannot be solved through evictions alone, and that it has to be coupled with a pragmatic population control policy particularly among immigrant Muslims, must be viewed seriously from a historical perspective. Sarma said this on Thursday while speaking about encroachment on land belonging to the Xatra institutions of Assam. The occasion was his government's completion of one month in office. Attributing the tendency of encroachment on land – particularly belonging to indigenous religious institutions – to the rising population, Chief Minister Sarma has linked it to a particular community. Subsequently, he has asked leaders of the All India United Minority Front (AIUDF) and All Assam Minority Students' Union (AAMSU) to motivate the immigrant Muslim community to adopt a "decent family planning" practice. Interesting to note, Chief Minister Sarma has also expressed his willingness to work with Muslim organizations to educate Muslim women on the need for population control to eradicate poverty, which in turn will ease the pressure on land. It is a fact that barring a near-microscopic two per cent indigenous Muslim population, the bulk of Assam's Muslims are of immigrant origin, with roots in erstwhile East Bengal, erstwhile East Pakistan and present-day Bangladesh, and they are all primarily Bengali-speaking. Because of immigration which started after the British had clubbed Assam with Eastern Bengal in 1905 – Assam has witnessed a rapid increase in the Muslim population. The result is: immigrant Muslims today constitute over 35Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's statement that the encroachment problem cannot be solved through evictions alone, and that it has to be coupled with a pragmatic population control policy particularly among immigrant Muslims, must be viewed seriously from a historical perspective. Sarma said this on Thursdper cent of Assam's population. They are also in majority in as many as 35 of Assam's 126 Assembly seats. The magnitude of the influx of Muslims from East Bengal can be gauged from how rapidly their population increased in the first four decades of the 20th century – from 3.55 lakh in 1911 to 13.03 lakh in 1941 –in the Brahmaputra Valley. There are reports which had put on record that in certain pockets the immigrants had 'almost swallowed' the indigenous population. In the Kamrup district, for instance, the number of immigrant Muslims increased from 44,000 in 1921 to 1,34,000 in 1931. Barpeta subdivision registered about a 150 per cent increase. It was in Barpeta that the pilot NRC project was violently opposed. In five mazes in Nagaon – Laokhowa, Dhing, Bokoni, Lahorighat and Juriya – the increase varied from 100 to 294 per cent during that same period. Two particular mauzas of Kamrup – Pub Chamariya and Paschim Chamariya – had recorded an increase in the number of immigrant Muslims by 142 per cent and 168 per cent respectively. The Chamariya Xatra was attacked and vandalized in 1983. Those are now historical data that can be used only for academic discussions. But Chief Minister Sarma has done well by saying that his government does not consider anyone as an "enemy" and that his government is the "guardian" of every poor family of the state. He has also sent a clear signal by saying that the tribal communities of Assam have understood this, and as such, they have already opted for small families. Moreover, they (the tribal communities) do not destroy forests, and rather engage themselves in activities to widen the green cover, Sarma has said. It is quite natural that those who stand for the protection of illegal migrants, and those who do not want to believe that Assam has been facing silent demographic aggression will oppose the Chief Minister's views. But then, what Chief Minister Sarma has said is based on facts and ground reality. It is important for the patriotic people – especially members of the younger generation of the indigenous communities – to read the political history of Assam about the last 120-130 years. They must know how the British had encouraged migration of "land-hungry" peasants of East Bengal to Assam, and how the immigrants had rapidly occupied wastelands, wetlands, forests, riverine areas, and PGRs and VGRs with the blessings initially of the British government, then of the Saadullah government. They must also know how four successive Chief Ministers of Assam – Lokapriya Gopinath Bardoloi, Bishnuram Medhi, Mohendra Mohan Choudhury and Bimala Prasad Chaliha – had invited the wrath of Jawaharlal Nehru for opposing the latter's pressure to settle more immigrants in Assam. The younger generation of Assam must also know how then Chief Minister Sarat Chandra Sinha had failed to send back thousands of refugees after the liberation of Bangladesh in 1972. And the younger generation must also know how then Chief Minister Hiteswar Saikia had withdrawn his statement that there were 30 lakh Bangladeshis in Assam, immediately after several pro-immigrant Muslim organizations had threatened to pull down his government in 48 hours in April 1992. Everything is related to what the present Chief Minister is talking about.