READY FOR TAKE-OFF, STUCK ON GROUND: An aircraft prepares for departure at Dimapur Airport as ground crew work near the terminal and runway. Calls for the release of land required for the long-delayed expansion of Nagaland’s only air link have resurfaced in the recent past. (Morung File Photo)
Appeals AR to consider larger public good
Kohima, January 14 (MExN): The Chakhroma Public Organisation (CPO) has issued an urgent call for action over what it described as the prolonged illegal occupation of land belonging to the Airport Authority of India (AAI) by the Assam Rifles Training Centre (ARTC).
The organisation stated that it is in possession of authenticated official records showing that the Dimapur airfield was formally handed over in 1987 by the Indian Air Force to the then National Airports Authority, now known as the AAI.
According to the CPO, the handover was duly executed and signed by Squadron Leader B S Bamra on behalf of the Indian Air Force, thereby establishing clear administrative ownership of the land.
Despite this documented transfer and repeated requests over the years, the ARTC continues to occupy land that was legally handed over to the AAI nearly four decades ago, it alleged.
The CPO maintained that the continued “illegal occupation” has become the principal bottleneck in the long-pending expansion of Dimapur Airport, Nagaland’s only air gateway, directly depriving the Naga people of economic growth, tourism potential and access to modern infrastructure.
Referring to the Assam Rifles’ motto, “Friends of the Hill People,” the organisation remarked that actions on the ground convey a different reality. True friendship, it stated, is reflected in respect for the rights, aspirations and development of the people.
By retaining land that does not legally belong to it and by demanding Rs16 crore in compensation for what the CPO described as “ghost buildings” that are abandoned and in a state of decay, the ARTC has reduced its professed commitment to the Naga people to a mere slogan, the statement asserted.
The CPO further alleged that the refusal to vacate the land, despite being provided with alternative rehabilitation sites at Sukhovi and Diphu, amounts to a blatant act of bad faith and continues to pose a direct obstacle to the State’s development.
In this context, the organisation appealed to the Assam Rifles to rise above institutional rigidity, consider the larger public interest, and facilitate the early vacation of the land in question, enabling the AAI to take up the much-needed expansion of Dimapur Airport on a priority basis.
The CPO expressed hope that its appeal would be received in a spirit of cooperation and mutual respect, consistent with the long-standing relationship between the security forces and the people.
Continued inaction on the issue, it cautioned, may be perceived as a disregard for the collective aspirations and legitimate concerns of the public.
