Land 'encroached' in Assam: twice the size of Goa

What is the extent of the land encroached in Assam, according to government records?

It was around 49 lakh bighas (or 6,652 sq km) of land across the state in 2017, the then junior revenue minister Pallab Lochan Das said in a reply in the state assembly. That would be twice the area of Goa and a little less than that of Sikkim, said a TOI report.

The encroached land includes 3,172 sq km of forest land and large areas that belong to ancient temples and Vaishnavite satras, the report said. The numbers presented in the assembly formed the basis of BJP's election promise to remove "encroachers" from land.


Earlier this week, two weeks were killed in police firing and more than 20 injured during demonstrations in Darrang district for rehabilitation of nearly 800 families evicted from the land they were living on for decades.


In 2016, the state government had set up a panel headed by former Chief Election Commissioner HS Brahma to suggest modifications in laws and policy “for ensuring protection of land rights of indigenous people.”

The panel’s report said, “...day in and day out, new areas are encroached upon by thousands of illegal Bangladeshis. Organised swarms of land-grabbing suspected Bangladeshis... equipped with construction materials and arms descend on vacant char areas (riverine islands) to establish illegal villages overnight and efforts of indigenous people to resist such organised invasions are met with counter-resistance and armed attacks.”