Meghalaya's USTM encroached on 25 hectares of forest land, SC panel recommends Rs 150 crore fine amid ‘flood jihad’ row

The University of Science and Technology Meghalaya (USTM), which Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma last year accused of causing flash floods in Guwahati through what he termed “flood jihad,” has been found to be illegally built on forest land without central clearance, a Supreme Court-appointed panel has reported.

The Central Empowered Committee (CEC), which advises the apex court on forest and environmental matters, said that USTM in Ri-Bhoi district occupies 25 hectares of forest land, of which 13.62 hectares are already under construction. 

It recommended a cumulative penalty of Rs 150.35 crore and ordered that the encroached land be restored to its natural forest state within a year.

The report added that construction activities for the proposed P.A. Sangma Memorial Medical College, promoted by the same foundation, have also damaged 7.64 hectares of forest. “The breaking of land has been done devastatingly, and the surroundings have been heavily disturbed,” the CEC observed, noting “massive and indiscriminate destruction” at the sites.

Also Read: USTM built on forest land, may not exist in 2 years: Himanta Biswa Sarma

The panel said no clearance was ever obtained under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, despite the Union Environment Ministry confirming in 2017 that USTM land was forest. 

Similarly, the state forest department in 2021 flagged violations of the Meghalaya Forest Regulation, 1973, in the medical college land.

Beyond USTM, the CEC also flagged illegal quarrying, mining, and crushing operations across Ri-Bhoi district, calling for their suspension until further review.

The report was submitted in connection with a case on rampant ecological damage in Meghalaya and its cross-border impact on Assam, particularly Guwahati. Its findings bring new scrutiny to USTM, which had denied Sarma’s allegations of “flood jihad” in 2023, even as the state grapples with recurring floods linked to deforestation and hill-cutting.