Overview

• Paikan Reserve Forest officials cleared nearly 1,000 bighas of land on Saturday, affecting about 1,080 families after eviction notices served last November and June.
• District authorities report that 90–95% of alleged encroachers vacated voluntarily ahead of the operation, dismantling structures and removing belongings.
• Forest department officers say the eviction complies with a Gauhati High Court order that displaced families must receive drinking water and basic relief.
• The government plans to fence the cleared area and plant bamboo saplings to restore habitat and reduce Assam’s high rate of human-elephant clashes.
• Opposition parties have filed legal appeals and held protests over notice periods and rehabilitation provisions, and several AIUDF MLAs were detained and later released during demonstrations.