Sivasagar flood-relief marchers detained at Khanapara after 400-km walk

Police in Guwahati on Monday detained more than 10 protesters who had walked about 400 km from Sivasagar to demand compensation for families hit by this year's floods in Upper Assam.

Dispur police stopped the marchers at Khanapara as they were heading to Janata Bhawan, the state secretariat, Pratidin Time reported.

Who was detained

The protesters were members and office-bearers of the Axom Chatro Yuva Sanmilan and the All Assam Scheduled Caste Students' Union (AASCSU). Jintu Mesh and Parash Jyoti Das were among those detained, according to the report.

The groups began their march on October 23 from Gaurisagar in Sivasagar district and walked for around 11 days to reach the outskirts of the capital. They planned to submit a memorandum to the Chief Minister at Janata Bhawan. Police had not publicly stated the grounds for the detentions or whether the protesters had been released at the time of the report.

Their demands

The organisations are seeking Rs 10 lakh in compensation for each family and business establishment affected by the July floods, along with rehabilitation for displaced families. When the march was announced, the groups said their demands covered flood-hit people in Sivasagar, Jorhat and Charaideo districts.

They have also asked the Centre for a special package to rebuild roads and other infrastructure damaged by the floods. In addition, the march was meant to highlight concerns over alleged illegal coal, stone and sand mining in Upper Assam, which the groups want stopped.

The flood background

Sivasagar was one of the worst-hit districts in this year's Assam floods. At the peak in July, the number of people affected in the district approached four lakh, The Times of India reported in August.

The state government has paid an interim assistance of Rs 15,000 to flood-hit families. In early August, about 43,000 families in Sivasagar had received it, while several thousand were still waiting, according to a review chaired by Minister Pijush Hazarika in the district at the time. The government also said it was arranging temporary shelters for families whose houses had been washed away.

Flood relief has remained a political flashpoint in Upper Assam since then, with opposition parties and local groups holding rallies and sit-ins in Sivasagar and Guwahati to press for larger and faster compensation.

What next

The two organisations have said that flood-affected families need adequate compensation and long-term rehabilitation, not just immediate relief. There was no immediate response from the state government to their demands on Monday.