Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has stated that the ongoing survey and eviction drives across the state aim to free forest land from illegal encroachment. He said that all deputy commissioners have been instructed to clear forest areas of encroachers while ensuring that indigenous tribal communities are allowed to stay under provisions of the Forest Act, as they are the original inhabitants.
The Chief Minister noted 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.
He reiterated the government’s commitment to restoring forest areas and protecting the rights of indigenous people while continuing the crackdown on illegal settlers.
This comes at a time when several people living in forest areas have received notices ordering them to vacate.
In Karimganj district, the Forest Division issued an eviction notice to Gopal Biswas, a resident of Jasmankapur village, for allegedly occupying forest land without authorisation and constructing a house while cultivating the encroached land. The forest department has directed him to vacate the land within a month, failing which legal action will be initiated under Assam Forest Regulation, 1891 (as amended). The notice was issued by the Range Forest Officer of the Chengi Range, and copies were forwarded to the Divisional Forest Officer and other concerned officials.
Meanwhile, the Golaghat district administration has launched Assam’s largest-ever eviction operation in the Rengma forest area along the Assam-Nagaland border in Uriamghat. The operation involves over 2,000 Assam Police personnel and around 500 forest guards. More than 100 excavators and Pokland machines have been deployed to clear approximately 11,000 bighas (around 3,600 acres) of forest land. Authorities say nearly 2,000 families have encroached on the land and turned it into betel nut plantations linked with the betel mafia.
Officials stated that 2,648 illegal houses built across 12 villages within the Rengma forest area will be demolished. Affected localities include Sonaribil Top, 2 No. Pithaghat, 2 No. Dayalpur, 3 No. Dayalpur, Dalanpathar, Kherbari, Vidyapur, Vidyapur Bazaar, 2 No. Madhupur, Anandpur, Rajapukhuri, and Gelajan.
Assam Police IGP Akhilesh Kumar Singh stated, “We had already made preparations, and the local people have also cooperated, as no one wants construction in the forest lands.”
Security convoys have been mobilised from multiple districts, with heavy machinery transported from Golaghat, Merapani, Sivasagar, and Tinsukia. Senior officials, including Additional Superintendents of Police, Deputy Superintendents, and Assistant Commissioners, are monitoring operations on-site. The drive began Monday morning from the Vidyapur area.
In the aftermath of one eviction drive, 54-year-old Abdus Samad Choudhury from the Paikan area of Goalpara district spoke emotionally about losing his home. “We have no land left; everything has been taken away. We only want a place to stay, a place to rebuild our lives. We hope the government will ensure our rights are not denied.” He added, “Where is our house now? There is nothing left. We have nowhere to go, nowhere to stay. We cannot afford to purchase land. We will die like this, with no shelter. You took our land, but we have nowhere else to go.”
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said that 70% of the identified encroachers had already vacated the land voluntarily. He reaffirmed the government’s resolve to reclaim forest and government land.
Last week, CM Sarma announced that 1.29 lakh bighas (over 42,500 acres) of land had been cleared in the past four years. However, about 29 lakh bighas (more than 9.5 lakh acres) remain encroached in the state. The government claims it has already cleared over 12,003 hectares of land, roughly the size of Chandigarh.
