Guwahati: Assam’s Environment and Forest department has illegally sanctioned the construction of another commando battalion camp within the state’s reserve forest.
Sources said that M.K. Yadava, the state’s Special Chief Secretary (Forest) who previously served as Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF), approved the construction of the 6th Assam Police Commando Battalion Headquarters in the Kundil Kalia Reserve Forest.
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This action was taken without obtaining the mandatory prior approval from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), a requirement under the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam.
This move has been widely described as a “gross violation” of forest conservation laws.
A Threat to Endangered Species and Forestland
The Kundil Kalia Reserve Forest, located in Eastern Assam’s Tinsukia district under the Sadiya Range of the Doomdooma (Territorial) Forest Division, is one of six reserve forests in the area. It is critically important due to its connection to the Eastern Hoolock Gibbon population, a species endemic to the region.
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The forest is already facing severe threats from encroachment, selective logging, and other human disturbances, leading to concerns about habitat loss and the potential extinction of the local gibbon population.
Geographically, the forest is contiguous with the Lower Dibang Valley District of Arunachal Pradesh, which influences the gibbon population found in Sadiya.
Unauthorized Construction and Systemic Violations
According to sources, the unauthorized construction is being carried out by M/s. Assam Police Housing Corporation Limited on a substantial 45.3 hectares of forest land. The project’s built-up area exceeds 20,000 square meters, a scale that also requires a prior Environmental Clearance (EC) under the EIA Notification, 2006.
Sources said neither the forest nor the environmental approvals were secured for the project. Satellite images from Google Earth confirm that construction is underway at the coordinates: 27.92855° N latitude and 95.896515° E longitude.
The contract for the project has been awarded to M/s. Uttar Pradesh State Bridge Corporation Limited. This incident has drawn sharp criticism from environmental activists and legal experts, who highlight a systemic disregard for environmental regulations in the region.
Legal Fallout and Past Incidents
The Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam mandates that any non-forest activity on reserved forest land must have the central government’s prior approval.
This is not an isolated incident. On August 6, 2025, Northeast Now reported that two other Assam Police commando battalion camps—one at Daldali Reserve Forest in Karbi Anglong district and another at Pabhoi Reserve Forest in Biswanath district—were also allegedly built inside reserve forests without permission from the Union Environment Ministry.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) and the MoEF&CC have already initiated legal action against M.K. Yadava for his role in these illegal activities.
Apart from the Kundil Kalia, Daldali, and Pabhoi Reserve Forests, Yadava, while serving as PCCF and Head of Forest Force (HoFF), also cleared two other commando battalion camps without central government approval: one at Inner Line Reserve Forest in Hailakandi and another at Geleki Reserve Forest in Sivasagar.
The NGT took up two separate cases against Yadava for these constructions, citing a clear violation of the Forest (Conservation) Act. While the NGT’s principal bench has closed the Damchera case after receiving post-facto approval from the Centre, the Geleki case is still pending before the Kolkata bench.
In July of this year, the MoEF&CC ordered legal action against Yadava for “gross violations” of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980.
In two separate letters dated July 2025, Deputy Inspector General of Forests (Central) Pee Lee Ete highlighted that site inspections by the Regional Office in Shillong revealed “large-scale, permanent construction” in both the Geleki and Inner Line Reserve Forests.
Investigations by both the MoEF&CC and an NGT-constituted committee concluded that significant construction was undertaken in both areas without the required central government approval.