Page 44 - June2018

Are Assam sandbars a safe haven

for illegal Bangladeshi migrants?

It is no secret that illegal migrant can easily enter in to Assam by paying 200 at its porous borders,
says a report. What is shocking that the Assam sandbars are turning hotbeds for illegal migrants
from Bangladesh posing threat to its demography and indigenous people, writes nandita sengupta

he boats of vegetables and submitted its report to Assam govern- arrivals which causes definite threats
pulses that touch the Brah- ment in April this year said Bangladeshi to the land rights of the indigenous
maputra river bank in Gu- migrants enter through the porous citizens of Assam as also to their very
wahati every morning are stretch of 1880-km Indo-Bangladesh identity.”
T mostly grown in the hun- borders that touches Assam, Megha-
dreds of fertile sandbars, locally called laya, Tripura and Mizoram. How do they settle in the sandbars?
chars that dot the 800-km stretch of the According to a report it says, “The The committee report said all lands in
mighty river of Assam — from Sadiya in Border Security Forces (BSF) or other the char areas virtually belong to and
the east to Dhubri in the west. paramilitary forces that are entrusted are settled by a well-established insti-
Though chars in the eastern parts of with guarding the borders make their tution known as Matabbar or Dewani.
Assam are inhibited by the ethnic Mis- job easy by allowing these seekers of For all practical purposes, they play the
ing tribes, the immigrant Muslims who greener Pasteur in Assam to cross the real role of the government, making al-
had migrated to Assam from erstwhile border for a little personal gain. It is an lotment of land to or settling land with
Pakistan, even during the British reign, open secret that anyone who wants to new arrivals of the infiltrators from
dominate the western parts which is enter in to Assam has only to pay 200 across the international borders, col-
close to present Bangladesh. or so. lecting revenue, exercising monopo-
The similar living condition and the In fact, the whole process of the im- listic authorities over the settlers who
alluvial land in neighbouring Bangla- migration is conducted by well-knit live there at the complete mercy of the
desh and in Assam’s sandbars continue special agencies or organisations that Matabbar and controlling all facets of
to attract the migrant Bangladeshis. The operate on both sides of the borders their activities.
trend, however, has turned into a politi- and take over the entire process of They are the real Zamindars and
cal issue in Assam over the decades as depositing the infiltrators in the As- wield tremendous political and finan-
the sandbars are considered to be the sam side of the borders. Before they cial clouts such that nobody can gather
den of “illegal migrants” from Bangla- cross the border, they are reportedly any courage to raise any voice against
desh that threaten Assam’s demogra- given language training, names of their them if they want to live there or be
phy and deepen the fear of identity cri- destination and contacts on arrival in alive at all. “To inject fear psychosis in
sis among the state’s ethnic tribes. Assam. their mind, the Matabbar has his ready
A committee constituted by the Some private Madrassas are report- weapon of threatening to get them de-
BJP-led government in the state that ed to play dominant roles in the whole tected by police.
came to power in May 2016, said that process of sending such consignments So the Matabbar exercises the full
chars have become a “safe haven for il- to Assam. On reaching Assam, the infil- power of the absenting government
legal migrants from Bangladesh” and is trators are taken over by the respective authorities and make allotment or
pushing the growing threat of identity assignees who utilize their vibrant net- settlement of land to the new arrivals
to indigenous people of the state. work to various destinations allotted to of suspected Bangladeshis, give them
each and the process goes on silently money for being settled at highly exor-
How do they Cross the International and smoothly perennially. bitant rate of interest and, in addition
Boundaries? And the Government of Assam finds to keeping them in perpetual fear and
The five-member committee, which no reason to be concerned with such control, the Matabbar builds the way to

tehelka / 15 june 2018 44 www.tehelka.com

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