Guwahati: Ahom-era military sites in Kaliabor are under siege. Encroachers have seized parts of the historic Misa Koth and Samdhara Garh, damaging remnants of a vital medieval defense system. Local residents and heritage enthusiasts now demand the government clear the sites and stop the rot.
Samdhara Garh, known as the Great Wall of China of the Ahom era, dates back to 1538 Saka under King Swargadeo Pratap Singha. Located at Rangagara in the Samaguri Revenue Circle, a four-lane highway now slices through the fort. Developers have hacked away at the northern side to build houses, destroying trees and terrain in the process.
Misa Koth faces a similar fate. Illegal construction sits on the grounds where trees once stood. Both sites fall under the Directorate of Archaeology, Assam, but current protections seem nonexistent. Experts worry that excavation and land misuse will permanently erase these war monuments. One observer noted that Samdhara Garh is regarded as the “Great Wall of China” of the Ahom era.
Calls for action are growing loud. Citizens want the Directorate to step in and secure the land immediately. Assam faces a broader struggle to save its history from rapid development, but these specific sites remain on the front lines of the fight.
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