More than one lakh mature full-grown trees have been felled across Assam since May 2016, when the BJP formed its first government in the state, for various public and private projects, according to official records. The Assam government, on the other hand, said that all these trees were cut in "dire necessity" to develop the projects, while more than 3.5 crore saplings have been planted in the last two years alone to compensate the loss in green cover. However, experts from different state-run institutions opined that cutting so many trees have resulted in "significant ecological loss" and comparing felling of mature trees with planting saplings is "problematic", while terming it "scientifically concerning" for no study to assess the impact. Replying to a set of queries sent to the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) through an application under the Right to Information Act, 15 out of 44 wildlife and territorial divisions across Assam have said that 1,06,896 trees have been