EMN
Dimapur, April 27
The United Naga Tribes Association on Border Areas (UNTABA) today said that until the final inter-state boundary demarcation between Assam and Nagaland is undertaken, the case which is under active litigation process in the Supreme Court, the administration in the neighboring districts should carefully adopt pragmatic steps to evict all the illegal encroachers from Assam side living in the Naga areas. The UNTABA also strongly urged the government of Nagaland to actively engage itself with its counterpart and implement the existing agreements so as to stop illegal encroachment and occupation of Naga lands and immediate eviction from Assam side.
A statement jointly issued by UNTABA Chairman, Hukavi T Yeputhomi and General Secretary, Imsumongba Pongen said, unless such steps are initiated immediately, the government of Assam might find itself in a deep trouble for arbitrary encroachment and occupation of Naga lands, unlawful deforestations of dozens of reserve forests and exploitations of various mineral resources including oil and natural gas from Naga areas.
Reacting to news report on April 26 last, UNTABA said, all the Naga tribes who are living in and around the border areas between Assam-Nagaland are not ‘encroachers’ nor ‘miscreants’ as always alleged by administrative and Police officers of the neighboring Districts of Assam.
“The Deputy Commissioner of Jorhat Solanki Vishal Vasant and Congress MLA from Mariani A/C, Rupjyoti Kurmi have once again termed the Naga people living in and around border areas particularly around Tiru Hills as ‘encroachers’ and ‘miscreants’. This misconception should be stopped once for all. These officers and public leaders are totally outsiders who have no knowledge of the history of land and the people living in these areas.”
Relating the factual story, UNTABA said that all the Assamese villages settled in the Tiru and Geleki Reserve Forests areas including ‘Rongkham or Laojan’, ‘Bimari Bosti’ or Leprosy Colony, Amuguri Tea Estates and Salling Tea Estates are the actual encroachers and miscreants who were pushed and facilitated by Assam administration in the Reserve Forest areas that belongs to Naga people.
The UNTABA asserted that all the reserved forests including Abhaypur Reserve Forest, Tiru and Geleki Reserve Forests, Desoi Valley Reserve Forests, Kakadanga Reserve Forest, Doyang Reserve Forest, Rengma Reserve Forest, Nambor Reserve Forests and Diphu Reserve Forest belong to Naga people traditionally, historically and politically.
It maintained that all these facts are properly recorded in the historical as well as in various political agreements made between the people of Nagaland and the government of India.
The UNTABA however said, since the final Inter-State boundary between the two states is yet to be demarcated, the two state governments have entered into an Interim agreement in 1972 and 1979 wherein all the above mentioned Reserve Forests have been covered.
“As per the provisions in these Agreements, Assam Government cannot facilitate any settlement of people of any origins, nor can it establish any Tea Estates in these Reserve Forests areas. Assam Government Forest Department was even been advised to seek permission from the Government of Nagaland in road maintenance works in the existing roads. But while the successive Governments of Nagaland are sleeping over the surreptitious activities of illegal settlements in all these years, Assam Government had systematically established hundreds of Tea Estates and had pushed and facilitated hundreds of settlements in all the Reserve Forest areas with people of questionable origins including the so-called ‘Tea Tribes’, illegal foreign immigrants, Advasis, Nepalise, etc. without any impunity. Over and above, not even a single Reserve Forest has been de-notified so far.”
The UNTABA said, it is the bounden duty of the administrations of both sides to practically adhere to the provisions of the Interim Agreements and not allow the authorities from Assam side to encroach on Naga lands.
“Any conscientious administrative officers of Assam should therefore go through the historical perspective, at least in this case – the Interim Agreements made between the two States before labeling the Naga people as ‘encroachers’ and ‘miscreants’ which may unnecessarily incite people. As for political leaders in the likes of MLA Rupjyoti Kurmi, instead of foolishly uttering abhorrent phrases, should first check his/her antecedent because it is very doubtful in Assam now a days even to identity of its own leaders because while the Government of Assam is trying to finalize the National Register of Citizens (NRC), the people of Assam valley are still at loggerhead over the very definition of Assamese.”
