Gauhati HC grants 45 days to finish work of Goalpara detention centre

The Gauhati High Court gave 45 days to the Assam government to finish the construction of a detention centre, now renamed transit camp, in Goalpara district.

Hearing a writ petition filed by Santanu Borthakur and several other pleas, Justice Kalyan Rai Surana accepted the government's request to grant six weeks to complete the construction of the detention centre at Matia in Goalpara.

"...the Court is inclined to grant 45 days time as prayed to the State as to complete the construction of the proposed detention centre and to shift the detenues to the said centre," the court stated in its August 11 order.

The court was informed that at present there are around 177 detainees in various detention centers in the state and the majority of those have not been able to provide the necessary documents, which are needed for releasing them.

Read | High Court asks Assam govt to finish work of foreigner detention centre in 6 weeks

"...the State envisaged that the construction of detention centre at Matia, Goalpara would be completed by September, 2021," the court said.

The advocate general submitted that although steps are being taken to complete the construction work within one month, he prayed for allowing six weeks time.

After completion of the construction, all the detainees lodged at various detention centers will be shifted to the upcoming camp at Matia, the court was informed by the government.

The high court has fixed September 9 for the next hearing of the case.

The upcoming Goalpara detention centre, the only dedicated place to put suspected and declared foreigners found in Assam, will have a capacity to house 3,000 inmates, including 400 females.

Assam at present has six detention centres, which were created by marking a part of the existing jails at Goalpara, Kokrajhar, Jorhat, Silchar, Dibrugarh and Tezpur.