Bongaigaon admin clears 75 bighas of encroached govt land at Kerkhabari
The land had been encroached upon by six Koch Rajbongshi families of Kerkhabari since 2013. They were using the land for raising paddy and as a seed bed, a KVK official said.
A file image of the eviction drive in Bongaigaon
Bongaigaon, Dec 13: The Bongaigaon district administration on Friday freed and fenced a large plot of encroached government land at Kerkhabari in the district.
A total of 75 bighas of government land at Kerkhabari Part-II under Srijangram Revenue Circle was allotted to Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Bongaigaon, on March 4, 2013. However, the land had been encroached upon by six Koch Rajbongshi families of Kerkhabari since 2013. They were using the land for raising paddy and as a seed bed, a KVK official said.
District administration officials and then Bongaigaon legislator Phani Bhusan Choudhury had earlier tried to convince the encroachers to vacate the land but they did not agree.
On Friday, Bongaigaon District Commissioner Nabadeep Pathak reached the spot along with Senior Superintendent of Police Mohanlal Meena to clear the encroachment. The administration took possession of the land and fenced its boundary with barbed wire in the presence of police personnel.
“The then legislator Phani Bhusan Choudhury had assured us alternative land for seed bed and paddy cultivation but he did not fulfil his commitment,” the encroachers rued, adding that they have no objection to leaving the land to the government; they only seek another plot from the legislator and the administration to continue their paddy farming.
Earlier, on December 8, Bongaigaon district administration carried out an eviction drive at Pachania and cleared a vast Village Grazing Reserve (VGR) land allegedly encroached by illegal settlers.
At least 164 families were reportedly living at the VGR encroaching around 45 bighas of its land, which falls under the Srijangram Revenue Circle of the district, since 1998.
By
Correspondent