Rohingya families left homeless as eviction drive intensifies in Jammu

Jammu: Hundreds of Rohingya families in Jammu’s Karyani Talab area of Narwal have started dismantling their makeshift homes and shops after landowners received notices from authorities directing them to clear the plots, leaving many residents without an immediate place to relocate.

Over the past two days, residents have been removing wooden structures, pulling down huts and clearing shops while gathering whatever belongings they can carry. Several families said they were forced to move onto the roads as they had no alternative accommodation.

Residents said the authorities first removed around 30 to 40 shops in the area before asking families living in adjoining shelters to vacate. Community members estimated that between 350 and 500 families residing in around 80 to 90 huts were affected. Some of the families had reportedly lived in the settlement for more than 15 years, Maktoob Media reported.

The eviction followed notices served on landowners whose plots had been rented to Rohingya families. The notices reportedly raised objections to the presence of foreign nationals on the land and instructed the owners to remove the residential and commercial structures.

One refugee told Maktoob that the notices referred to the land being classified for agricultural use and stated that it could not be sublet for residential purposes.

For many residents, the action has resulted in the destruction of homes they had built over several years. Families said they had already been struggling with inadequate access to basic facilities before the latest developments.

Several residents said they possessed UN refugee documentation and had arrived in India after fleeing violence and persecution in Myanmar. One refugee said people had left their country after the situation became dangerous and had since survived in Jammu through daily-wage labour and other informal jobs.

With their shelters now being dismantled, residents said they were uncertain about where they would go next. Many earn a living through construction and other daily-wage work, as well as cleaning jobs in hotels and establishments in the area.

The Rohingya Human Rights Initiative has claimed that the eviction drive has extended across several settlements and that around 350 shelters have already been removed, affecting nearly 1,800 people.

The organisation alleged that families were being forced to dismantle shelters constructed from their limited savings without being offered suitable alternative accommodation. It said some displaced families were considering moving to places such as Hyderabad to look for work and shelter, while others were considering Bangladesh, though neither option necessarily provided a secure or sustainable solution.

Community members further alleged that police had stopped some displaced families from putting up temporary shelters at other locations, leaving them without a viable place to stay.

The rights group said the situation had created a cycle of displacement in which families were being removed from their homes without being provided a clear legal and safe relocation option. It also highlighted the presence of children, women and elderly people among those affected.

The developments come weeks after a Union government-appointed High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes visited Jammu and inspected a Rohingya settlement in the region.

The committee, headed by retired Justice Prakash Prabhakar Navlekar, was established in May 2026 to examine demographic changes and suggest administrative and legal measures. During its August 10-12 visit to Jammu, the panel also visited areas inhabited by Rohingya families.

Government figures presented before the committee showed that 7,656 Rohingyas had been identified in Jammu and Kashmir. Of these, 6,737 were recorded across the 10 districts of the Jammu region, while 919 were identified in the 10 districts of the Kashmir Valley.