Assam: Satra Mukti Sangram Samiti, Ledo residents protest against NEC CIL's coal dumping ground

In a significant display of unity, the Satra Mukti Sangram Samity (SMSS), an allied organization of the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samity, joined forces with the residents of Jharna Basti, China Basti, and Malu Village in Ledo to stage a dharna at Ledo Bazaar on Thursday, August 29.

The protest was directed against the Northeastern Coalfields, a subsidiary of Coal India Ltd (NEC CIL) in Margherita, for allegedly forcefully designating residential areas as a coal dumping ground. Over 2,000 people, including locals and activists, gathered at the site to voice their grievances.

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The demonstrators chanted slogans against key political figures, including Margherita MLA Bhaskar Sharma, NEC CIL Margherita General Manager K. Mere, Assam Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, and the ruling BJP government at both the state and union levels. The protesters accused these leaders of being complicit in the eviction of indigenous families from their ancestral lands in the name of industrial expansion.

Pappu Dutta, President of the SMSS Central Committee, expressed deep concern over the situation, stating, "It is deeply unfortunate that under the BJP-led government, both at the state and union levels, people are enduring immense suffering. Now, indigenous families who have lived peacefully in Jharna Basti, China Basti, and Malu Village for decades are being forcibly displaced to make way for a coal dumping ground."