GUWAHATI: The District Administration of Kamrup (Rural) has served an eviction notice to a village adjacent to the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International (LGBI) Airport as part of extension plans for the airport's existing runways.
The eviction notice has been served to almost 54 households residing in the Koitasidhi village in the area.
A total of 55 bighas, 2 Katha, and 3.50 Lecha land is to be requisitioned by the Assam government for providing land to the Transport Department for construction of "approach path of Runway-02 side for facilitating the safe landing of aircraft at LGBI Airport, Guwahati."
The said village is beyond the legally walled area of the LGBI airport.
Villagers refusing to give up their ancestral land have reportedly returned the eviction notice.
However, the issue of land requisition from the neighbouring villages by the LGBI Airport is not a new scenario. The people residing in the peripheral areas of the airport have been giving up their land for the construction and extension of the airport since 1962.
Villagers have alleged that several more plots have been taken away from them illegally in the past.
Residents of the Koitasidhi village have said, “ We would rather give our blood than give up our land.”
In a meeting held by the local residents of the area and the concerned authorities in the presence of the Deputy Commissioner of Kamrup on September 3, it was agreed that the village will not be evicted, however, the large trees have to be cut down to ensure the safety of the low flying aircraft. As such the larger trees in the area have already been chopped off.
An airport official speaking to G Plus said, “As per the requirement of the airport we need this land for technical support of the flights and to ensure the safety of both the aircraft and the village. The area is adjacent to the Runway and it has to be developed as an approach area or taxi area for aircraft, especially for bigger International airplanes.”
“The Koitasidhi village is nearby the southern wall of the airport. We had to cut down the bigger trees so that they do not come in the path of the flights when they are flying low during take-off and landing. The requisition is being done as per the guidelines of the International Civil Aviation Organization, and the Director-General of Civil Aviation, Government of India by the State government,” he added.
