At a time when the state government has been trying to free land belonging to the Xatra in stitutions, reserved forests and different government institutions and departments, it has come to light that over 4.47 lakh families have erected houses illegally on government lands across Assam. As reported in the Sunday edition of this newspaper, evicting this large number of families from government land has become a very major challenge. What is most dismaying is that this massive encroachment has reduced the total area which the government had kept reserved in the interest of the public, and for maintaining ecological balance. As pointed out, most of the encroachers already have land elsewhere in the state. Only a small section has actually become landless after losing their homestead and cultivation land due to river-bank erosion in different districts. What is also important to note, these encroachers also include political leaders, businessmen, middle-men, and government officers too. The present chief minister had in December 2021 had made a public statement that his government would be tough against encroachers of government land. But, though the eviction operation had started with a lot of enthusiasm, the tempo has reportedly died down for reasons best known to the powers that be. It is, however, an open secret that some political parties, including the Left parties, always throw their weight behind encroachers, thus putting spanners on the government's sincere efforts. The people of Assam remember clearly how the leader of a self-styled messiah of the peasants had opposed the eviction drive launched to remove encroachers (most were of doubtful antecedents) from Kaziranga National Park in 2016. Some politicians and political parties stand on the side of the encroachers and not on the side of the law-abiding citizens, in total disrespect to the rule of law. That the law-abiding tax-paying residents of Guwahati have been suffering from artificial floods is also because of massive encroachment on wetlands like Barsola, Sarusola, Silsako and Deepar Beel, as also on the Bharalu, Kalmoni, and several other natural rivers and streams passing through the city. That a portion of the Amchang Wildlife Sanctuary in Guwahati has been burning for the past few days is also a direct fallout of encroachment by people, both of doubtful origin as well as of the indigenous variety.