SILSAKO ENCROACHMENT: Lakhs of rupees change hands illegally

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Lakhs of rupees changed hands for the sale and purchase of land in Silsako Beel. A racket that had a roaring business with land grabbing and selling did it all. The government also issued directives for the dismantling of the structures erected in the area by the Ginger Hotel, Omeo Kumar Das Institute, Lawn Tennis Ground, etc.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “The government favours none in eviction drives. It will evict every illegally constructed structure. We have asked the district administration to act against Ginger Hotel, Omeo Kumar Institute, Lawn Tennis Ground, an office of Koch-Rajbongshis, and even the plot of Badruddin Ajmal.”

Sarma said, “Satellite images make it clear that the encroachment was massive between 2009 and 2015.”

According to sources, a section of the affected people bought plots of land for Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh or more from the land grabbing racket. The police have identified some of the land grabbers, most of whom are absconding.

The Guwahati Water Bodies (Preservation and Conservation) Act, 2008, has specially notified the Silsako Beel in Schedule I to IV along with other six wetlands. The Silsako Beel has a length of around five kilometres and an average width of 250 metres.

According to sources, the major problem lies in the fact that the wetland has no existing physical demarcation despite notification. The area is indented with revenue lands here and there, and brokers took advantage of that and sold plots.

Assam Remote Sensing Application Centre has identified around 3513 wetlands in the state, and many of them are disappearing fast due to siltation, encroachment, or otherwise.

Also Read: Silsako eviction drive: Respite for 10 families

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