Assessing Long-Term Land Use and Land Cover Changes Around Raimona National Park, Assam, India

Raimona National Park was established in 2021 and is known for its rich biodiversity and unique ecosystems in Assam. Rapid human population growth, agricultural expansion, resource extraction, and climatic conditions have exerted significant pressure on the park and its surrounding landscape. Land use and land cover change (LULC) is the most significant observable environmental change and is a continuous process. Quantifying the magnitude and variety of the variability of these changes in the protected area provides a scientific understanding of past and present trends, as well as potential mitigation strategies for future park management. As a relatively new addition to India's protected area network, Raimona National Park offers an opportunity to study landscape transformations and changes in land use and land cover. This study examines public perceptions, LULC changes over the past half-century, and the ethnobiological relation to biodiversity, particularly how collection patterns have evolved. Satellite imagery from the Esri Sentinel-2 Land Cover Explorer was used to analyze LULC changes between 2017 and 2023. Additionally, decadal LULC changes were assessed using Google Earth maps from 1984, 1994, 2004, 2014, and 2024 to understand the historical landscape dynamics of Raimona National Park. Land use trends over 50 years were examined using questionnaire surveys, remote sensing, GIS, and historical data.