Deepor Beel, a freshwater lake covering an area of 40 square kilometres, is located in the south-west of Guwahati city in Kamrup metropolitan district. In 1989, the Assam government declared 4.14 square kilometres of the total area a bird sanctuary, and in 2002, Deepor Beel was listed as a Ramsar site, one of the three in northeast India.
Encroachment over the years has threatened the survival of both the Beel and the people dependent on it. The size of the Beel has been shrinking at an unprecedented scale. According to a media report, once spread over 4,000 hectares, the Beel has now shrunk to 500 hectares.
A few years earlier, National Public School authorities had encroached some areas of Deepor Beel, constructing around 20 structures and a wall, but they were demolished in 2015 on the orders of the Kamrup (Metro) district administration. A Times of India report quotes the order as saying, “The NPS authorities have destroyed the water body by earth-filling and erecting boundary walls, disturbing the natural flow of Pamohi drains. They have caused damage to the Beel’s biodiversity and ecosystem.”
Such encroachment threatens the livelihood of at least 1,200 families living around the Beel. Besides fishing and tourism, these families generate income by selling nymphaea nuts and flowers as well as medicinal plants and seeds of water lilies growing in the waters of Deepor Beel. But these sources of income are unlikely to sustain if the Beel continues to be encroached.
Garbage dumping is another problem. A dumping ground by the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) at Boragaon adjacent to the Beel is polluting the waters, which is affecting the lake's flora and marine life. This, in turn, affects the number of migratory birds visiting the Beel, who depend on the fish for food. “If some day fishes become extinct from the Beel and migratory birds stop coming, encroachment will erase Deepor Beel from the map,” a conservationist told the media. “In January 2006, nine storks were found dead, which might have been caused by toxic wastes. The site now faces various anthropogenic threats, primarily from the development of industries within the periphery of the site, illegal hunting of wild animals and deforestation,” Bibhab Talukdar of Aaranyak, an environmental organisation in Assam, told the media.
The Boragaon dumping ground was supposed to be shifted to Chandrapur in 2015, but no action has been taken until now. On April 29, 2019, the National Green Tribunal ordered the state government to shift the dumping site within two months, after a petition was filed by Rohit Choudhury, an environmental activist. Following the order, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal directed the GMC in May to submit reports in two months on converting the waste to manure by setting up a waste treatment plant.
GMC officials could not be reached for comments despite repeated phone calls by LCW.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources
Opposition against environmental degradation
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Region Classification
Urban
Type of Land
Common
Non-Forest (Other than Grazing Land), Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
Type of investment:
Year of Estimation
Has the Conflict Ended?
No
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Lack of legal protection over land rights
Violation of standard international laws
Violation of environmental laws
Legal Status:
In Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
National Green Tribunal
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Guwahati Municipal Corporation
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
No
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
No
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
Aaranyak
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Nazimuddin Siddique is an independent researcher based in Assam, with a PhD in Sociology. His academic interests include socio-political developments in Northeast India, citizenship, migration and displacement, to name a few.
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