GUWAHATI: Calling upon the minority community to “practise small family size” to reduce poverty, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday warned of conflicts for living space in future if the population continued to explode.
The statement came against the backdrop of the eviction of 200 encroachers, mostly immigrant Muslims, drawing criticism from some quarters. Urging the minority-based political party AIUDF and All Assam Minority Students’ Union to work on population control, Sarma said a day would come when people would settle down on the land of Kamakhya Temple, leading to conflicts.
He said his government would take steps to encourage population control. The government stands for the development of all communities but it will need community support, he said. “To remove poverty, we have to educate Muslim women and control population. We are there to educate women. However, poverty will never get reduced unless you control your population,” Sarma said.