Reacting to the eviction drives that were carried out by Assam government along the Nagaland-Assam border, United Naga Tribes Association on Border Areas (UNTABA) said the eviction drive particularly in the Daldali Reserve Forest in the Lahorijan sector was “too little and too late.”
UNTABA chairman Hukavi T. Yeputhomi and general secretary Imsumongba Pongen alleged that the initiative was “driven by ulterior motives based on the inter-personal rivalries between the powers that be from Assam.” UNTABA said it was nothing but “a mere eye-wash on the bigger lapses on the part of Assam government over its illegal occupation and random exploitations of thousands of square miles on the rich and fertile Reserve Forests areas of the Naga people inside Assam.”
“If the Assam government is really intent, sincere and committed on its eviction drive in these Reserve forests areas, then it must undertake eviction drive in all these Reserve Forests areas without any hesitation covering all the areas without being selective as per the Provisions contained in the Reserve Forests Acts on the following Reserve Forests making the cut-off mark from 1860 onwards when the then Assam Tea Company was first established and tea gardens and industries were established in the Naga lands,” UNTABA stated.
UNTABA said the names of the Reserve Forest (RF) were– Langting Mupa Reserve Forest, Krungming RF, Nambor RF, Upper Daigurung RF, Lower Daigurung RF, Kaliani RF, Mikir RF, Diphu RF, Rengma RF, Daldali RF, Dhansiri RF, Lumding RF, Desema, Kaki, Geleki, Tiru, Kakodanga, Desoi (Tsurang) Valley, Desoi and Doyang RF.
UNTABA said all these Reserve Forests areas rightfully belongee to the Nagas “as clearly defined starting from the year 1841 when the British government established Rengma Naga Hills and then Naga Hills district in 1866 headquartered at Samagooting, the present Chumukedima which was again defined in 1867 so as to cover Rengma areas under Nowgong district.”
UNTABA said the same was again redefined vide ‘Foreign Department No. 3386 P, dated 24th. December 1875 so as to cover all the Naga areas from present Sibsagar district to North Cachar Hills, presently Dima Hasao district in Assam, which was again slightly rectified vide Foreign department Notification No. 988 E, dated 23rd. April 1884.
It said that the above listed Reserve Forests and areas were systematically transferred to Sibsagar and Nowgong districts when there was no Diphu and Golaghat as district headquarters.
UNTABA asserted that the Assam and Central governments “can never ever compensate the Naga people over its illegal occupations, random destructions and exploitations of these fertile and rich areas and for allowing random settlements of the people of illegal immigrants and labor tribes from the Central India over these lands starting from the establishment of Tea Industries in 1860s, extraction of Coal and Petroleum products and by bringing Railway track in 1898 onwards.
History will never forgive nor can it be re-written.”