The Assam government is preparing to resume an eviction drive against 59 families living at No. 2 Negheribil along the Assam-Nagaland border after the Supreme Court cleared the way for the Golaghat district administration and Forest department to proceed with the action.
A team comprising officials from the district administration and the Forest Department visited the area on Sunday and served a final notice to the remaining families. The residents have been asked to vacate their houses by August 18.
As part of preparations for the proposed eviction, officials numbered the houses in the area and carried out a detailed survey using drone cameras. The exercise is aimed at identifying the structures and preparing the administration for the next stage of the eviction process.
The Forest Department had earlier conducted an eviction drive against 205 families living in No. 2 Negheribil. However, 59 families opposed the action and approached the Gauhati High Court. The matter was subsequently taken to the Supreme Court, where the families obtained a stay while the case remained under judicial consideration.
The Supreme Court has since ruled in favour of the Assam government, allowing the state authorities to proceed with the eviction, officials said.
Following the court’s decision, the district administration issued notices to the remaining families, giving them a deadline of August 18 to vacate their homes. Officials indicated that if the residents do not comply with the notice, the administration is likely to resume the eviction drive after the deadline.
The development comes at a time when Assam and Nagaland are continuing efforts to manage their long-standing inter-state boundary dispute and prevent local developments along the border from leading to fresh tensions.
Nagaland Deputy Chief Minister Y. Patton had met Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in Guwahati on July 29. The meeting covered inter-state relations, cooperation and proposed oil and gas exploration along the Assam-Nagaland border.
Patton has maintained that border-related matters should be addressed through dialogue, joint action and coordination between the two states, while respecting existing agreements, including the 1972 Interim Agreement.
The Nagaland government has also maintained that while it supports action against illegal encroachment, evictions and other activities in sensitive border areas should be undertaken in coordination with the administrations of both states.
The emphasis on coordination is aimed at preventing administrative action in disputed or sensitive areas from creating further tension between communities living along the border.
The proposed eviction at No. 2 Negheribil is therefore being viewed against the broader backdrop of the Assam-Nagaland boundary issue, which has remained a sensitive matter between the two neighbouring states for decades.
For now, the Assam administration has given the 59 families until August 18 to vacate the area, with further action expected if they do not comply with the final notice.
