Guwahati: The National Green Tribunal (NGT-East Zone Bench, Kolkata) has directed the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) to file an affidavit explaining its stand on the large-scale encroachment in Assam’s Sonai-Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary and Chariduar Reserve Forest forests.
The encroachment has allegedly been permitted over the years and decades.
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The order was issued on August 21, 2024, in a case filed by RTI activist Dilip Nath against the Principal Chief Conservation of Forest (PCCF), Assam, and others.
The NGT bench, comprising Justice B Amit Sthalekar and Dr Arun Kumar Verma, took note of the affidavit dated July 15, 2024, filed on behalf of the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Assam, stating that around 300,000 people have encroached upon the government land in the state’s forests, clearing large areas of low land evergreen and semi-evergreen forests to build permanent houses and cultivate commercial crops.
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The affidavit also stated that about 23,028 claims have been filed under the Forest Rights Act 2006 in Charduar Reserve Forest, Balipara Reserve Forest, and Sonai Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary.
The tribunal directed the MoEF&CC to file its affidavit in reply to the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest’s affidavit, detailing the actions taken by the ministry to address the large-scale encroachment.
The Chief Secretary, Government of Assam, has also been directed to re-file a defective affidavit within four weeks.
The next hearing is scheduled for November 7, 2024.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) earlier pulled up the Assam forest department for failing to adequately address allegations of large-scale construction within the Sonai-Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary and Chariduar Reserve Forest in the Sonitpur district.
The Eastern Zone (Kolkata) bench of the NGT on July 3 rejected an affidavit submitted by the Assam forest department and demanded a more comprehensive response within a week.
The affidavit was filed in response to a 2023 petition by RTI activist Dilip Nath, who accused the government of violating the Forest (Conservation) Act.
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Nath’s petition alleged that the Assam government had violated the Forest (Conservation) Act by permitting large-scale construction within the protected forests.
The NGT had previously directed the state government to provide details regarding the eviction of encroachers.
An order issued by the NGT on May 2, 2023, directed the Assam Chief Secretary to file an affidavit identifying the officials who authorized construction activities that clearly violated the Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980.
The affidavit submitted on July 3 failed to satisfy the tribunal. The NGT emphasized that the construction constitutes a serious breach of the Forest Act and held the government accountable for its lack of action on evicting encroachers.
The tribunal further questioned the inaction of senior forest officials, particularly the then Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) and Head of Forest (HoFF) MK Yadav, who allegedly allowed these unauthorized activities to occur since 2017.
The NGT also noted the concerning presence of 38 schools already established within the wildlife sanctuary, along with the construction of paved roads.