Umrongso 19-KM Villagers Seek Reduction of Land Under Limestone Block, Compensation

Hills Live News,
Haflong, Sept 28: Residents of Umrongso Village 19-KM, affected by the New Umrongso Limestone Block of JK Lakshmi Cement Ltd, have submitted a memorandum to the Chief Executive Member (CEM) of the Dima Hasao Autonomous Council seeking redress of their grievances related to land acquisition and compensation.

In the memorandum submitted on September 25, the villagers demanded minimisation of the area of village land falling under the proposed New Umrongso Limestone Block, which covers around 200 hectares.

They also demanded payment of land compensation and jirat in accordance with the applicable fair compensation provisions, besides implementation of CSR schemes based on the needs of the affected village.

The villagers stated that several bighas of land in the area had been provided for cement industries and limestone mining in the interest of industrial and overall development of Dima Hasao and Assam. However, they alleged that several grievances of the affected residents had not been properly addressed.

The memorandum urged the DHAC authorities to take necessary steps to resolve the issues at the earliest in the interest of the affected villagers.

The memorandum was signed by Monsing Enghi, Sarkari Gaonbura, Mensing Hanse, President of the Village Development Committee, and Joysing Ronghang, Secretary of the VDC, Umrongso Village 19-KM.

Copies of the memorandum were also submitted to concerned DHAC officials, the District Commissioner, Dima Hasao, the Directorate of Geology and Mining, and the Chairman of the Assam Mineral Development Corporation (AMDC), among others.