Hundreds protest in Assam's Jagun against proposed rehabilitation of Laika families

Hundreds of people from six villages staged a protest in Assam's Tinsukia district on Tuesday, July 14, against the proposed rehabilitation of 334 families from Laika in the Tirap Reserved Forest area near Phaneng-Kenia.
 

The protest, organised by the Greater Phaneng-Kenia Balijan Land Protection Committee, witnessed the participation of a large number of men and women from the affected villages.
 

The protesters marched to the National Highway and assembled in front of the Patkai Gate in Jagun, raising slogans against the State government's rehabilitation plan. They alleged that settling the Laika families in the area would adversely affect the interests of the local population and demanded that the proposed rehabilitation be withdrawn.
 

The agitation marks a renewed opposition by residents of Phaneng-Kenia, who have been voicing concerns over the government's plan to rehabilitate the displaced Laika families in the Tirap Reserved Forest area.
 

The protesters urged the government to reconsider its decision and consult local stakeholders before proceeding with any rehabilitation exercise. They warned that the agitation would be intensified if their demands were not addressed.
 

The Assam government has proposed the rehabilitation of 334 families from Laika, who have been living in difficult conditions for years after being displaced from the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park area. The proposed rehabilitation, however, has faced resistance from sections of the local population in the identified relocation site.