GUWAHATI, July 10 � The Assam Real Estate and Infrastructure Developers Association (AREIDA) on Thursday alleged that an organized racket was behind the unabated encroachment on hills and reserve forests not only in the capital city but across the state and called upon the government to strictly implement the legal provisions to save the ecology.
Welcoming the current eviction drive in the city, the Association said that the law enforcing authorities must act without fear and favour to save the gateway to the North East from being destroyed by hordes of organized illegal encroachers.
�Organized illegal encroachers have grabbed natural drainage channels, the wetlands, the reserve forests and the hills leaving helpless law-abiding citizens at their complete mercy,� said PK Sharma, president of the Association while addressing mediapersons here.
Sharma said that no city can survive without stem action to curb illegal activities. Stressing the need for acting in an impartial way to deal with the present situation in the city, Sharma said that anyone encroaching on wetlands, natural drainage systems etc., be it a corporate house or a powerful organization or a common person should be meted the same treatment.
Regretting that despite several legal provisions the green cover was fast depleting, Sharma pointed out that for even the most scientific drainage system to work private grabbing of prohibited zones must be sternly dealt with.
�This land is not anyone�s private property and the government has send the right signal to establish the rule of the law,� said Sharma adding that studies conducted on the subject of drainage in the city by the government had recommended strict action to free the eco sensitive zones as a top priority in controlling flash floods and water-logging.
On the other hand, welcoming the government notification on transfer of barren land which may have been shown as agricultural land in the records but is neither of any agricultural use nor seen with any agricultural activity in the past ten years, Sharma said that this was a positive development as land is required for setting up educational institutes, industries, hospitals and housing.
�It is also high time that the Land Revenue and Regulation Act 1886 of the Colonial Era is amended,� insisted Sharma.
The Association has also demanded for a permanent and well defined mechanism to fix accountability of the responsible officers.
