Assam records over 1,100 human-animal conflict deaths since 2016: Minister
Jayanta Mallabaruah told the Assam Assembly that 1,147 people died in human-animal conflict between 2016 and 2026. He said the figures also highlighted elephant deaths, encroachment and limited forest recovery.
- Jul 07, 2026,
- Updated Jul 07, 2026, 9:23 PM IST
More than 1,100 people have lost their lives in human-animal conflict across Assam over the past decade, while over 3.15 lakh hectares of reserved forest and protected areas remain under encroachment, Environment and Forest Minister Jayanta Mallabaruah informed the Assam Assembly on July 7.
Replying to a question from Congress MLA Rekibuddin Ahmed, the minister said 1,147 people were killed in incidents involving wild animals between 2016 and 2026. The highest number of fatalities was recorded in 2025 with 138 deaths, followed by 116 in 2023 and 115 in 2018.
The minister also stated that 246 elephants died in the state during the same period due to causes including electrocution, train accidents and poisoning. The highest number of elephant deaths was reported in 2017 at 42, followed by 36 in 2025 and 27 in 2024.
Mallabaruah said Assam has a total of 18,33,592.84 hectares of reserved forests and protected areas. As of February 12, 2026, encroachment covered 3,15,997.1251 hectares.
He further informed the House that eviction drives conducted between 2015-16 and 2025-26 had reclaimed 25,588.7656 hectares of forest land.
Citing the India State of Forest Report (ISFR), the minister said Assam's forest cover stood at 28,313.55 square kilometres in 2023, accounting for 36.1 per cent of the state's geographical area. This marked a marginal increase from 28,105 square kilometres, or 35.83 per cent of the geographical area, recorded in 2017.
The minister also said that 2,42,013 trees were felled under the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980, between 2016 and 2026. He added that compensatory afforestation had been undertaken in accordance with prescribed guidelines.