TURA:
The NPP-led government’s latest decision to come to a settlement with encroachers who have taken over government lands in Williamnagar, B-Mahal region of Tikrikilla-Raksamgre and now Tura is a master stroke for Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma’s government as elections draw near.
The settlement deal by which the encroachers can retain the land they have usurped from the government albeit for a paltry sum of Rs 2.55 lakh is a win-win scenario for those who were once illegal settlers but now owners of the plots.
But it appears to have opened a dangerous precedent for what’s to come in the future.
“This move by the government has literally legalised land grabbing. Today anyone, including you and I, can intrude into government land and build a house and make a noise when asked to evict knowing that soon we can become legal owners. All it takes is for the settlers to be in large numbers which counts in elections,” said a senior retired government official in Tura who has been disillusioned by this decision.
Tura is facing a serious issue of eviction of encroachers from government lands in several areas, including Rongka Chiring which is next to Tura Civil Hospital, and across Dakopgre New Tura region where vast areas are illegally occupied.
“This move by the NPP is nothing short of a legal document to encourage encroachment. Now that they have done it, tomorrow if another party comes to power then they will surely follow suit. It’s a loss for the state,” says a teacher who has been keeping abreast of the happenings.
The claims of the chief minister that the state benefits from monetary payment by the encroachers as part of the settlement is looking nothing short of a temporary respite since land is the only commodity whose price shoots up with each passing year.