Naxals could hole up in BTAD Forest

: Kokrajhar, November 7,  2010

Member of Parliament from Kokrajhar SK Bwiswmuthiary today expressed fear apprehension that the visit of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Mr. Babulal Marandi in Ripu Chirang reserve forest under Holtugaon forest division on November 4 last could encourage the existence and growing of Maoism in Bodoland forests especially at Ripu and Chirang reserve forest for which the state should take an alertness measures right from now.

Bwiswmuthiary in a press meet held at Titaguri, Kokrajhar  today said everybody have doubt  over the possibility of hole up of either Maoist or the Naxals in the thickly encroached forest areas in the district and this could affect on the communal harmony besides making the situation on the boil. The Adivasis have a secret plan to create a new Jharkhand in the forest areas of BTC and Assam in the west through Maoist guerrillas, he said adding that many new Adivasi people have been coming from Jharkhand and Bihar with this intention deep inside the reserve forests.

The visit of Marandi and BJP MP, Bijaya Chakravorty on November 6 at Lumsung reserve forest without taking the local MP and BTC administration in to confident is a serious matter, he said and added that there could be nefarious  political design of BJP who are going to make the issue politicalize just to  have political mileage. He urged the government of Assam to take strong measures so that no political party can take advantage in the encroached forest areas and let the forest department to do as per their power and guidelines because the protection of forest and wild life becomes the most important worldwide considering the global warming. He also said the eviction is going on not only in Lumsung but in many places of Ultapani, Saralpara, Khungring, Laopani etc where the Bodo, Nepali, Adivasi and Rabhas have been evicted for several times.

The MP expressed surprise over the statement of Bijaya Chakravorty who said that the Adivasis have been in Lumsung since the last fourty years. Bwiswmuthiary said that the entire Lumsung and Chirang reserve forest were virgin having thick Sal trees but the degradation came only after 1991 due to heitening of movement of the Bodos and people started to encroach upon forest  land in fresh areas which is still continuing unabated. He also said that the distribution of Rehabilitation Grant of Rs. 50,000.00 to relief camp inmates without taking the department of forest in to confident was a big blunder of the government of Assam as the people who are receiving this amount have already been inside reserve forest. There should have been proper alternative where landless families would be settled, he added. He also urged that government of Assam to stop politicalizing the matter and prohibition of entering people from other parts of the country without prior permission.