NDA 3.0 committed to reclaim 1250 sq km encroached land in Assam

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma says the NDA is committed to reclaiming 1250 sq km of encroached land. The AIUDF has opposed a new citizenship survey, calling it a waste of time and urging the finalization of the existing NRC process.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in the State is "committed to reclaiming over 1,250 square kilometres of encroached land" and asserted that the administration has already begun work on the ground to achieve the target.

NDA 3.0 Committed to Reclaiming Encroached Land

Sharing a post on X, Sarma wrote, "NDA 3.0 is committed to reclaim over 1250 sq km of encroached land in Assam. We are already on the ground working towards realising this promise."

The Chief Minister also shared glimpses from Saturday's anti-encroachment operation conducted by the state administration. The Assam government has been carrying out eviction drives across several districts as part of its campaign against alleged illegal encroachments on government and forest land.

AIUDF Opposes New Survey, Urges Govt to Finalise NRC

This comes weeks after Assam Chief Minister Sarma backed conducting a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the State. Meanwhile, the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) today opposed any move to conduct a new socio-economic or citizenship-related survey in Assam, calling it a "waste of time" that would only cause unnecessary harassment to the public.

Speaking to ANI on the proposal of a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the state, AIUDF General Secretary Rafiqul Islam argued that the National Register of Citizens (NRC), which underwent half a decade of intense scrutiny, should be treated as the final word on the matter.

Islam questioned the logic behind initiating a fresh survey when a massive, Supreme Court-monitored exercise had already been concluded. "NRC has already been done in Assam after five years of scrutiny. What can be bigger than that? It's over. No need for another survey. Doing an SIR will just waste time and trouble people," said Islam.

The AIUDF leader took a swipe at political narratives that claimed millions of illegal immigrants were residing in the state. He pointed out that the final draft of the NRC, published in August 2019, debunked those inflated projections.

Islam further emphasised that even the 19 lakh exclusions are not definitive. "They said there were 90 lakh outsiders, 50 lakh, 70 lakh -- but in the end, only 19 lakh names were excluded. Even among those, many have parents or siblings included in the NRC, so their names will also be corrected later," he noted, suggesting the actual number of undocumented individuals would shrink even further.

Instead of expending resources on a new SIR, the AIUDF urged the government to focus on wrapping up the pending legalities of the 2019 NRC. "Instead of starting another SIR, complete the NRC process. Give NRC cards quickly to those whose names are already there. For the 19 lakh excluded, let them file claims and objections through FT (Foreigners Tribunals) as per Supreme Court guidelines," Islam told ANI. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)