The Gauhati High Court has directed the Assam and Arunachal Pradesh governments to file affidavits by November 16 detailing the action taken to remove alleged encroachments from reserve forests along their interstate border. The direction covers forest areas in Sonitpur, Biswanath, Lakhimpur and Dhemaji districts, with particular attention to Behali and Singlijan Reserved Forests in Biswanath district.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Ashutosh Kumar and Justice Arun Dev Choudhury issued the direction while hearing a public interest litigation filed by Amitabh Choudhury. The petition raises concerns over alleged continuing deforestation, illegal construction and the occupation of notified reserved forest land along the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border.
The court has asked both state governments to provide details of the steps taken to make the identified reserve forests encroachment-free. Assam’s response will be represented by Additional Advocate General PN Goswami, while Senior Government Advocate A Chandran will appear for Arunachal Pradesh, according to the report.
The petition has specifically highlighted alleged encroachment in Behali and Singlijan reserve forests. An estimate placed before the court by the petitioner alleges that approximately 6,733 hectares of Behali Reserve Forest and 450 hectares of Singlijan Reserve Forest have been encroached upon. These figures were submitted by the petitioner and are part of the claims being considered in the proceedings.
The petitioner also alleged that villages have developed within the forest areas and that permanent structures have been built there. The court order noted the allegation that several civic amenities have also been institutionalised in these locations, indicating that the issue extends beyond isolated structures to the presence of settled communities and public facilities within notified forest land.
Senior advocate HK Das, appearing for the petitioner, argued that the authorities were not prevented by any legislative vacuum from evicting encroachers from the reserved forests. He submitted that powers available to the authorities were not being used, although the reasons for this were not known to the petitioner.
The petition referred to constitutional provisions under Articles 14, 21, 48A and 51A(g), along with provisions of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and the Assam Forest Regulation, 1981. These references form part of the petitioner’s submissions and the legal framework cited before the court.
The case places the administration of reserve forests in a border region under judicial scrutiny. It also requires the two state governments to present a documented account of enforcement action across a landscape where alleged settlement, construction and civic infrastructure have intersected with protected forest areas.
The next formal milestone is the November 16 deadline, by which Assam and Arunachal Pradesh are required to submit their affidavits on the action taken in the identified reserve forests.
