Reported by Sandeep Sharma
Guwahati: The Assam Forest Department has cancelled the Jagiroad Stone Mining Area No. F(6) tender in Nagaon district after legal scrutiny and technical issues in the Sonaikuchi Reserve Forest.
An order issued on April 28 by the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Nagaon Division, said the tender process for appointing an agency to award the minor mineral concession for the Jagiroad stone mining site stood cancelled due to “technical issues”.
“The tender process for appointment of an agency for awarding the minor mineral concession in respect of Jagiroad Stone Mining Area No. F(6), located in Sonaikuchi Reserve Forest, Jagiroad, stands hereby cancelled due to technical issues. Accordingly, all bids submitted and any correspondence made with this division in connection with the above-mentioned tender shall be treated as null and void,” the order stated.
The now-cancelled tender was originally floated on November 16, 2025, when the Nagaon forest division invited bids for the allotment of Jagiroad Stone Mining Area No. F(6).247 under Dharamtul’s Western Range.
The proposal sought to grant a 30-year mining lease under a “Circular Economy Based Zero Waste” model, a move that had triggered widespread concern among local residents and environmental campaigners, who feared irreversible damage to the reserve forest.
The project soon became entangled in legal battles, with the matter reaching the National Green Tribunal’s Eastern Zone Bench, where the tender faced challenges over its environmental implications and procedural validity.
Adding to the pressure, the Supreme Court, while hearing petitions filed by environmental activist Dilip Nath, intervened in the larger issue of alleged illegal quarrying in the Jagiroad area. In cases numbered 125409/2025 and 125412/2025, the apex court stayed illegal mining operations and directed the Assam government to probe the allegations.
The controversy deepened after the Forest Advisory Committee, on January 22 this year, granted in-principle approval for the diversion of an additional four hectares for the expansion of Jagiroad Stone Mahal, fuelling fears of an increased mining footprint within the reserve forest.