RAIPUR: It is often said that “the forester’s foot is the best manure for the forest.” In a remarkable achievement, Chhattisgarh has reclaimed and restored 1,800 acres of encroached forestland in the Udanti-Sitanadi Tiger Reserve (USTR), safeguarding biodiversity, preventing further deforestation, reducing wildlife habitat loss and mitigating the risk of increased human-animal conflict.
Regaining the vast forest area, progressively occupied over the last 18 years, posed a serious challenge for the Chhattisgarh Forest Department. The department carried out a difficult exercise to clear the encroached designated forestlands, estimated to be worth over Rs 500 crore, said Varun Jain (IFS), Deputy Director of USTR.
The IFS officer relied on technological interventions to address patrolling gaps, reduce man-animal conflicts, and strengthen the monitoring of forests and wildlife.
As many as seven major habitats and over 300 alleged encroachers settled in the region were evicted amid strong resistance, with reports of attacks on forest staff during the anti-encroachment drive that began two years ago.
Jain sought assistance from the National Remote Sensing Centre, one of the key centres of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in Hyderabad, acquiring satellite images from 2008–2010. He also carried out drone mapping of the encroached area to create an imagery database for 2022.
The analysis revealed how forest cover loss began after 2012 and continued until 2020, during which encroachers allegedly cleared vast tracts of dense jungle.
“It’s an exceptional feat for the state. The removal of these encroachments using technology and force has resulted in the creation of inviolate space for herbivores and carnivores, leading to diminishing man-animal conflicts. Besides, the compensation burden of the state exchequer has also reduced,” said V. Sreenivasa Rao, PCCF and Head of Forest Force.
In 2022, the Chhattisgarh Forest Department built its own Google Earth Engine-powered Remote Sensing Portal to assess forest cover and surface water changes on a weekly basis, as well as to identify hotspots of forest loss over the past 20 years using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.
The USTR spans two districts, Gariaband and Dhamtari, where encroachers have allegedly made systematic attempts for years to capture forestland. The challenge was compounded by the presence of outlawed Maoists in both districts.
There are 110 legal villages (revenue villages converted from forest villages) within the tiger reserve. For the Forest Department, the situation was worrying as alleged encroachers and poachers, mostly from outside the state, attempted to hold sway.
Continuous monitoring of new and old encroachments and forest loss areas is being carried out using the portal, with regular enforcement actions taken. “A month ago we cleared encroachment and restored another 60 hectares of forestland,” said Jain.
Based on satellite images, the department concluded that all the illegal settlements emerged only after 2008, meaning they were not entitled to any land under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), which applies only to land occupied before December 2005.