Asom govt assures to protect forest land

Guwahati, July 10 (UNI) Asom Environment and Forest minister Rockybul Hussain today assured the state Assembly of taking adequate measures to protect the forest area under the Laokhowa Reserve Forest in Central Asom.

Replying to a call attention motion by AGP member Girindra Kumar Barua, who citing a news report said most of the reserved forest was encroached by people from surrounding areas and all animals in the forest were killed.

The minister pointed out that a part of the land under the reserved forest was allotted to a cooperative farm under the directive of the court while about 10 km area in the over 70 km forest was occupied by people from eight forest villages existing within the reserved forest.

Maintaining that no fresh encroachment had occurred since last few years, Mr Hussain said the government has also been carrying out eviction of forest areas from time to time.

The Laokhowa Reserve Forest was notified in 1979 and as per census it had 103 rhinos apart from other animals when it became a reserved forest.

However, it has no rhino population today, the minister said, admitting that a few of them had been killed by poachers while others could have migrated to the Kaziranga National Park.

UNI XC MT SP AB 1255