Arunachal: APCSU welcomes report on Hollongi Airport rehabilitation scam

Diyun: The Arunachal Pradesh Chakma Students Union (APCSU) Saturday welcomed the release of Fact Finding Report on Hollongi Airport rehabilitation scam following massive public pressure to release the report, which has been withheld for the last one year.

Prepared by APCSU ex-president Drishya Muni Chakma, the fact finding report is about the only airport of Arunachal Pradesh being constructed at Hollongi, Papum Pare district, for which a total of 156 Chakma families were displaced.

The report was prepared following the on-the-spot visit by a three-member team of APCSU headed Drishya Muni Chakma on February 1-2, 2021. They interviewed the displaced victims and the Chakma Rehabilitation and Resettlement Committee (CRRC) formed illegally by the Deputy Commissioner of Papum Pare district.

The displaced people told the APCSU team that each displaced Chakma received Rs 25,000 as transport costs for shifting against the sanctioned amount of Rs 50,000, about Rs 1 lakh cash assistance, while each house was constructed at the cost of Rs 4 to Rs 6 lakh against the sanctioned amount of Rs 23.60 lakh per house. The displaced people were denied all other sanctioned facilities.

CRRC president Bijay Ranjan Chakma and general secretary Shambhasur Chakma told the APCSU Fact Finding Team that out of Rs 34 crore sanctioned for rehabilitation and resettlement of the 156 displaced Chakma families, Rs 6.5 crore was deducted for electricity and water connection, Rs 7 crore was deducted for land filling and dressing, Rs 2.3 crore was deducted for Bank Charges/Postal/Transaction Charges, while Rs 18.20 crore was received by the CRRC.

The APCSU Fact Finding Team argued that the deductions cannot be taken from the amount exclusively meant for the rehabilitation of the displaced people. Instead, the amount should have been deducted from the fund allotted from the component such as shifting of utilities or acquisition of land funds.

The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 states that compensation amount has to be deposited into the bank account linked with Aadhaar of each displaced person. The Deputy Commissioner failed to do so and, instead, transferred the rehabilitation amount to the CRRC which is illegal as per the Act and the alleged embezzlement took place from the CRRC account, the report said.

On March 10, 2021, the 156 displaced Chakma families filed a complaint with Chief Vigilance Officer-cum-Chief Secretary of Arunachal Pradesh against the alleged masterminds of the scam including Paritosh Chakma from Mizoram and Sadhan Kusum Chakma, Bijay Ranjan Chakma, Shambhasur Chakma, etc., from Papum Pare district and some government officials. However, no action was taken.

Thereafter, on October 11, 2021, the victims filed a Criminal Writ Petition No.17 of 2021 before the Guwahati High Court (Itanagar Bench) and during its hearing on March 31, 2022, the high court directed the Chief Secretary, Deputy Commissioner of Papum Pare and the CRRC to submit their replies within three weeks.

“The fact-finding report should be placed before the Guwahati High Court in the ongoing writ petition. If these are the findings, then what has the SIC been doing? This exposes the nexus between the officials and the CRRC, and the Fact Finding Report should help punish the scamsters,”said APCSU president Rup Singh Chakma.

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