Assam: Dhekiajuli farmers protest eviction for solar project

Guwahati: Hundreds of farmers at Dhekiajuli in Assam's Sonitpur district were engaged in fierce protests against an eviction drive conducted by the district administration.

The land, which has been their source of livelihood for generations, is being acquired for a renewable energy project. The situation escalated following the administration's renewed eviction drive on Sunday, marking the third major eviction effort in the Chitalmari area.

Over 1,000 residents of Dhekiajuli have voiced their strong opposition to the eviction, chanting anti-government slogans and demanding fair compensation and rehabilitation. The contested land is part of a larger area where the administration plans to establish multiple solar power projects, including one already operational in Chitalmari.

In 2022, the administration evicted approximately 1,000 hectares of land for the project. However, numerous families refused to vacate their ancestral lands and continued to cultivate crops, relying on agriculture for survival.

The district administration initiated a fresh eviction drive on Sunday, continuing the operation into the following day, deploying hundreds of police personnel to enforce the eviction.

The initial eviction drive occurred in September 2022, and subsequently, on March 10, 2024, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma inaugurated a 50 MW solar power plant on the evicted land.

On Sunday, the administration began constructing a boundary wall around 700 bighas of the project land, deploying bulldozers under heavy security.

The administration claims the land is government property and that the families residing and farming there are doing so illegally. The ongoing construction of the boundary wall led to the destruction of standing crops, including wheat, eggplant, and peppers.

The administration has stated that farmers will be allowed to harvest their crops within the designated boundaries until the wall’s completion. However, once the wall is finished, entry will be strictly prohibited.

Locals have expressed deep concern, stating they have not been offered alternative land or rehabilitation packages. They argue they have nowhere else to go and are being deprived of their only means of survival.

"We have been living and farming on this land for generations. Where will we go? They are destroying our livelihoods," a protesting farmer lamented.