The politics of eviction and citizenship in the Brahmaputra valley, Assam, India

Abstract

Floods and erosion have been among the primary factors to induce the displacement of indigenous Axomiya and the Miya communities in the Brahmaputra valley of Assam. This trend has been observed since the last quarter of the twentieth century, and more prominently in the first decade of the twenty-first century. These displaced communities encountered eviction as their self-settlement in exclusive zones like forests, embankments or grazing lands were legally appraised as encroachments. Therefore, contested claims over land are a central concern in the governance and bureaucratic milieu of Assam. The eviction drive that was carried out in Amchang Wildlife Sanctuary of Guwahati in 2017 is regarded as one of the most vulnerable evictions of recent times. This article deals with the question of counter-insurgency operations of the State from the narrative of erosion, eviction and indigeneity. This study derives its data and inferences from primary modes of data collection, mainly field study and face-to-face interviews.