Guwahati: Assam Environment and Forest Minister Jayanta Mallabaruah has come under criticism from environmental activists after stating that increasing revenue collection would be one of his key priorities in the forest department. Conservationists argued that the department’s foremost responsibility is safeguarding forests and wildlife, not maximising revenue.
Speaking to reporters in Guwahati on Sunday, Mallabaruah said the departments under his charge-Finance, Forest and Mining are all revenue-generating departments and that his focus would be on eliminating leakages in revenue collection.
He said the government does not intend to burden citizens with additional taxes and instead aims to improve efficiency in revenue collection. Referring to the forest department, the minister said allegations of revenue leakages had surfaced in the past and stressed that his objective was to ensure complete collection of the department’s legitimate revenue.
The remarks, however, sparked concern among environmentalists, who warned that placing excessive emphasis on revenue could undermine conservation efforts.
Journalist and environmental activist Apurba Ballav Goswami said the government’s priority should be protecting forests, particularly at a time when climate change and global warming are posing serious environmental challenges.
He cautioned that policies driven primarily by revenue generation could lead to overexploitation of forest resources, adding that the forest department’s principal mandate is to conserve forests and wildlife rather than generate income.
Goswami also referred to the Supreme Court‘s 1996 directions restricting tree felling in the Northeast, saying the government should strictly adhere to those guidelines. He stressed that preserving forests is essential for protecting wildlife and maintaining ecological balance.
Environmental activist Dilip Nath also criticised the minister’s remarks, describing them as contrary to the fundamental objectives of the forest department.
According to Nath, the department’s responsibilities include protecting reserve forests, wildlife sanctuaries and national parks, removing encroachments from forest land and restoring degraded forests through plantation drives.
He said the emphasis on revenue collection appeared to divert attention from these core functions and expressed concern that it could encourage unsustainable exploitation of forest resources.
Recalling the Supreme Court‘s observations made in 1996, Nath noted that the court had expressed concern over India’s inadequate forest cover and imposed restrictions on tree felling across the Northeast to safeguard the region’s fragile ecology.
He warned that any policy prioritising forest revenue over conservation could have long-term environmental consequences and urged Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to intervene to ensure that ecological protection remains the department’s primary focus.