Mass Exodus in Uriamghat Amid Eviction Drive
Eviction Drive Triggers Exodus
Jorhat, July 25: The impending eviction initiative in Uriamghat has led to a significant departure of alleged encroachers, with more than 1,000 freight vehicles exiting the jurisdiction of the Uriamghat police station.
Reports indicate that many evacuees are heading back to districts such as Nagaon, Morigaon, Hojai, and Sonitpur. Local sources mention that smaller freight vehicles are charging between Rs 8,000 and Rs 12,000 for transport, while larger trucks are demanding fees ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000, resulting in substantial profits for local transport operators.
On Thursday, Sarupathar MLA Biswajit Phukan confirmed that numerous alleged encroachers have vacated the area following eviction notices issued by the Forest Department.
“Our aim is to ensure a peaceful eviction, and we plan to initiate the restoration of the Rengma forest shortly,” he remarked.
He added that the Forest Department has successfully surveyed around 11,000 bighas of land.
The evictions have prompted alleged encroachers to relocate to various regions in Assam, including Lahorighat and Dhing in Nagaon, as well as Korigaon in Golaghat district.
In the meantime, Abhijeet Chutia, President of the Sarupathar unit of the All Assam Chutia Students’ Union, expressed concerns on Wednesday regarding potential syndicates that may be providing shelter to the evacuees and called for an investigation into possible resettlement rackets.
Neighboring states have taken notice of the situation. The governments of Nagaland, Meghalaya, and Manipur have instructed their respective Deputy Commissioners to remain alert to prevent any influx of illegal migrants from Assam.
The Meghalaya government directly associated its advisory with the eviction drive in Assam.
The circular stated, “In light of the ongoing eviction drive against illegal immigrants by the Government of Assam, all deputy commissioners are directed to maintain vigilance and implement necessary measures to control any potential influx and ensure law and order.”
While Manipur did not explicitly mention the Assam evictions in its advisory, it urged monitoring of unusual interstate movements.
The memorandum instructed that if any such movements are detected, they should be reported immediately, and biographic and biometric details of those individuals must be collected. Furthermore, the Manipur government emphasized that these individuals should be housed in secure designated locations for shelter and humanitarian assistance, without allowing them to integrate into the local community; all such migrants will be deported following due procedures.