April 25, 2024
April 25, 2024
Staff REPORTER*
ITANAGAR, May 30: All Tawang District Students’ Union (ATDSU), which has been conducting Operation Clean Drive (OCD) to check illegal migrants from neighbouring state and country, said may Tibetan refugees enjoy dual status in the State.
OCD Chairman Pema Tsering told media persons here on Wednesday that the refugees staying in Shyo village are enjoying refugee certificate (RC) as well as scheduled tribe (ST) status.
“There are many instances where family members of the refugees get settled in different countries through the RC while the rest are enjoying the benefits of ST in the district,” he said at the Arunachal Press Club here.
A letter in 2002 by former State Social Welfare secretary had clearly ordered the then deputy commissioner of the district to verify with the reference to the genealogical tree prepared by him in respect to 90 families settled before independence in Shyo village for APST certificate.
“The population in village has now increased to almost 1,000 but there is no intense verification of the ST and RC yet. Since 1992 there was no land allotment to the villagers but they have acquired it in recent times. This is a sign of danger to the rights of indigenous tribe of the district,” Tsering said.
“The OCD committee has met the GB of Shyo village where he revealed that many people there have fake ST not approved by him. This was revealed through RTI and documents provided by the district administration,” he added.
On May 29, the committee wrote a letter to the chief secretary for immediate cancellation of three candidates who appeared for the APPSC examination in the recent days and crosscheck at the earliest.
“The APPSC in return wrote a letter to the Tawang DC to crosscheck against the allegation of three aspirants. The father of those three candidates is from the same Shyo village notified by the State government as refugee. How can they defy the order passed to follow the genealogical prepared in 1936?” he said.
OCD committee member and ATDSU Secretary General Lham Tashi said: “We have also given a letter to the Tawang DC to verify of land allotment papers of those encroaching upon government property without land allotment.
“About 200 people applied for land allotment but only two got the allotment. We want immediate cancellation of the one regularisation of land extension of two recent allotment made by Director Land Management to Thutan Yangzon and Tsering Lhamu,” he added.
“The State government should constitute a committee to check the illegal encroachment, RC and fake ST in the district immediately. If the government fails to act on the genuine demands of the indigenous people of the district we will go for democratic movement in days to come,” Tashi said.
The land at Children’s Park in Forest Colony and a plot adjacent to the residence of PHE executive engineer in Tawang was allotted to these two people, the ATDSU leader said.
