Guwahati, 18 May (HS): Assam’s aggressive anti-encroachment campaign has emerged as one of the largest land recovery exercises in the state’s recent history, with the government reclaiming more than 1.19 lakh bighas of government and forest land during the last four years. The large-scale eviction and land restoration drives, spread across several districts, are now leaving a deep environmental, social and political impact across the state.

According to official figures, the recovered land covers nearly 25,000 acres, equivalent to around 100 square kilometres. The highest volume of reclaimed land has been recorded in Sonitpur district with nearly 39,527 bighas cleared, followed by Darrang with around 17,905 bighas, Lakhimpur with 13,481 bighas and Hojai with 10,749 bighas.

The eviction drives have primarily focused on reserved forests, wildlife corridors, grazing reserves and government-owned land that authorities claim had been illegally occupied over the years. Major operations were carried out in ecologically sensitive regions including the Pova and Pabho reserved forests, where officials said large stretches of forest land had been cleared to revive damaged ecosystems and restore wildlife habitats.

Forest and revenue department officials maintain that the recovered land is crucial for protecting Assam’s biodiversity and reducing the growing incidents of human-animal conflict. In several districts bordering forest zones, shrinking wildlife habitats had reportedly forced elephants and other animals into villages and agricultural areas, resulting in repeated clashes and crop destruction.

Environmental experts have welcomed the restoration of forest areas, stating that continuous encroachment had severely affected Assam’s ecological balance. They believe the recovery of land could strengthen conservation efforts, improve groundwater retention and help regenerate degraded forest cover in the long term.

However, the eviction drives have also triggered humanitarian and political debates. In many affected areas, displaced families alleged they had been living on the land for decades and demanded rehabilitation and resettlement support from the government. Opposition parties and rights groups have questioned the manner in which some operations were conducted, while the state government has defended the actions as necessary to safeguard Assam’s land, forests and indigenous identity.

The Himanta Biswa Sarma-led government has repeatedly asserted that the campaign is part of a broader policy to free government land from illegal occupation and preserve the state’s natural resources. Officials indicated that the operations will continue in the coming months, with plans to reclaim hundreds of additional square kilometres from alleged encroachers.

The ongoing campaign has now become a defining administrative and political issue in Assam, simultaneously reshaping conservation policy, land governance and demographic debates across the state.------------

Hindusthan Samachar / Sriprakash