Assam: Fresh eviction drive clears encroachments in Sonapur months after resistance-torn operation

An eviction drive to clear government land, from where encroachers were driven out last year, was carried out in Assam's Kamrup Metropolitan district on Friday, an official said. 

About 30 semi-permanent structures were cleared in the drive in the Kachutali area in Sonapur revenue circle, adjacent to Guwahati city, he said.

The district administration had carried out an eviction drive in the same area in September last year to clear around 1,050 bighas (over 347 acres) of land. 

The first phase of the drive met with resistance, leading to violence, in which two people were killed and nearly 40 people were injured.

Also Read: AAP Assam in turmoil: State president Manoj Dhanowar, women's wing chief Masuma Begum resign

Some of the government land that was cleared last year was again being encroached upon, the official said. 

"About 30 semi-permanent structures had come up," he said. No untoward incident was reported in this eviction drive, with most people leaving with their belongings since morning. 

Around 650 families, primarily Bengali-speaking Muslims, were affected in the eviction drive in September. 

They claimed that they had moved to Sonapur a few decades ago from Morigaon, Darrang, Barpeta and other districts after losing their land to river erosion. 

The state government, in its budget for this fiscal, announced relocating the 10th Assam Police battalion to Kachutoli, stating that it will help protect tribal land and enable urban expansion in the state.