Assam Land and Revenue Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2026 Restricts Land Purchase Near 250-Year-Old Heritage Sites

Key facts

• The Assam Assembly passed the Assam Land and Revenue Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
• The amendment restricts buying or holding land within a 5-km radius of iconic heritage institutions that are at least 250 years old.
• Only 'original inhabitants' and specified categories such as Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, indigenous ethnic communities, and disadvantaged groups can buy land in protected areas.
• The Bill defines an 'original inhabitant' as a person whose family has lived in the protected area for three generations up to January 1, 2006, counting one generation as 25 years.
• Existing land patta holders in protected areas can continue to stay, while unauthorised occupants may be evicted by the District Commissioner.
• The Bill identifies Moran, Matak, Chutia, Koch-Rajbongshi, and Ahom as indigenous ethnic communities, and includes tea, adivasi, and other notified communities as disadvantaged groups.
• Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the law is secular as it applies to 250-year-old religious institutions of all communities.