- Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced surveys to free forest land from illegal encroachments
- Deputy Commissioners must identify and remove encroachers, protecting indigenous and tribal rights
- Eviction of all encroachers will take at least 10 years due to widespread illegal occupation
Amid a series of ongoing eviction drives across Assam to reclaim forest and government land, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has announced that the state-wide surveys and operations are aimed at freeing forest land from illegal encroachments.
The Chief Minister stated that all Deputy Commissioners have been directed to identify and remove encroachers from forest areas, while ensuring that indigenous and tribal communities, recognised as original inhabitants, are protected under the provisions of the Forest Rights Act.
The CM further claimed that although several eviction drives have already been carried out, removing all encroachers will take a minimum of 10 years due to the large number of illegal immigrants who have occupied forest land in different districts.
"Every DC has been asked to find out the level of encroachment in the forest area. And we will try to make sure that we will clear out the forest area. There are some people like indigenous communities and tribals who can live there under forest act. We will evict everyone who are not covered under forest rights act, but clearing all encroachment will take at least 10 years," the chief minister said.
He added that the government is doing it as a part of its commitment to restoring forest areas and protecting the rights of indigenous people, continuing the crackdown on illegal settlers.
According to the Union Environment Ministry's report to the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the state's total forest area under encroachment was 3,620.9 square kilometers (3,62,090 ha) as of March 2024, making it the second highest among all Indian states and Union Territories, after Madhya Pradesh.
