Assam’s forest cover shrinks despite Minister’s claim: RTI activist
Assam ranks first in India for forest encroachment, with over 2.13 lakh hectares lost.;
The Apex Court had previously noted in February last year that the revised definition of "forest" under the amended law excluded nearly 1.99 lakh square kilometres of forest land.
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Tezpur, February 7: Assam’s forest crisis has come under scrutiny after Union Minister Kirti Vardhan Singh claimed in the Lok Sabha that the state has the highest forest cover. However, official data tells a different story—Assam not only leads in forest land encroachment but has also seen alarming rates of deforestation.
According to the India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2023, Assam currently has 19,699.73 square kilometers of forest cover, but 86.66 square kilometers were lost between 2021 and 2023 alone.
The report also revealed that 2,13,253.91 hectares of Assam’s forest land have been encroached upon—the highest in India, followed by Maharashtra (57,554.87 hectares) and Arunachal Pradesh (53,499.96 hectares). Meanwhile, Lakshadweep and Puducherry have lost zero hectares to encroachment.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has taken serious note of the situation, filing a suo-moto case and issuing notices to the state and central governments.
A bench led by Justice Prakash Srivastava and expert member Afroz Ahmed stated that Assam had violated forest conservation and environmental protection laws, which has worsened climate change impacts across the Northeast region.
RTI activist Dilip Nath strongly criticised Assam government for the state’s worsening forest crisis. He stated that despite receiving Rs 556 crore from the Centre for afforestation and deploying two new forest battalions (one male, one female), the state government has failed to curb deforestation.
"At a time where there are reports of highest deforestation in Assam released by the central agencies, the state government is giving bhumi patta to encroachers. This is a shameful thing to do and the government should take note and curb deforestation," Nath told The Assam Tribune.
Deforestation has severely affected Assam’s wildlife, forcing elephants into human settlements in search of food.
According to official reports, between 2019-20 and 2023-24, Assam recorded 383 human deaths and 91 elephant fatalities due to such conflicts.
Nath further emphasised that Sonitpur district has seen the highest human-elephant clashes.
Amid rising encroachment, regional political and social organisations staged a protest at the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) office in Diphu.
Led by APHLC, ASDC, KSA, KNCA, ASDCYF, and KARAA, the demonstrators demanded urgent action against illegal settlers and called for stricter land laws to protect indigenous communities.
Protesters warned that unchecked encroachment threatens Karbi Anglong’s cultural and territorial integrity. Representatives urged authorities to take decisive steps to preserve the region’s identity and halt further land occupation.
Environmentalists warn that if the current trend continues, the state could face severe biodiversity loss, climate instability, and escalating human-wildlife conflicts.
