The group reportedly cut down a large number of trees in the forest's Singibeel, Mugapara, Borhola and Charaisagia areas near the Assam Police Battalion camp in the Nazira subdivision of Sivasagar district. They also destroyed some tea garden areas along the Assam-Nagaland boundary and occupied forest lands.
The attack on the forest comes at a time when the Centre is trying to solve the inter-state border disputes of Assam with neghbouring Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.
"We have got information that a group of Naga encroachers have occupied a vast area in the Geleki Reserve Forest by cutting down trees this week. They have also been trying to occupy tea gardens located along the border areas," said a Sivasagar forest official.
Divisional forest officer (Sivasagar) Ranjan Kumar Das added, "Forest officials conduct regular patrolling along the border and many encroachment attempts of Nagas have been foiled regularly."
All Assam Small Tea Growers' Association president Cheniram Khanikar said, "The Naga encroachers have been trying to occupy the tea garden areas located along the border by threatening small tea growers there."
He added that more than 1,200 small tea growers are currently engaged in Charaipung, Geleki and Amguri all border areas in the district that they have been bearing the brunt of extortion, and abductions by Naga encroachers for the last few years.
"We have sent a memorandum to Assam chief secretary, urging him to take steps for protection of small tree growers residing along the border areas. But we are yet to see any action so far," he added.
A senior forest officer of the district said, "According to official records, the Geleki reserve forest covers 6,000 hectares. The Naga encroachers have already occupied more than 4,000 hectares by various means."
"Encroachment in Geleki started in 1972 and continued for the last four decades. Recently, the state revenue and forest departments started a survey in the reserve forest," he added.
A two-member mediation team constituted by the Supreme Court visited the disputed areas along the Assam-Nagaland boundary in Sivasagar, Jorhat and Golaghat districts and took stock of the situation in these places on November 17. On August 20, the apex court had directed to resolve the decades-old issue through mediation and a division bench of the court ordered constitution of a panel comprising the two mediators.
On September 9, Assam home commissioner Jishnu Boruah visited the trouble-torn border areas in Sivasagar district. Boruah visited Namtola, Avoyapur, Charaideu, Bihubar and Geleki reserve forest and submitted reports to the government.