BHADERWAH: Continuing with their operation against the timber smugglers , Police in yet another operation against the illegal loggers today seized 33 timber scants in Chirala Range of Bhaderwah Forest Division in districts Doda. Acting on a specific information about the timber being dumped and smuggled, Police party from Police Station Thathri led by SHO Ravi Parihar conducted raids at village Bankaanthawa and Goesti in Tehsil Chrialla and seized 16 illicit timber logs from Ravinder Singh S/o Lakhmi Chand R/o Bankaanthawa and 17 illicit timber scants from Farooq Ahmed S/o Abdul Rashid Lone R/o Goesti Chiralla respectively.
"After making the seizer of the dumped illicit timber, a case under FIR Nos. 28/2015 and 29/2015 under sections 379 RPC, 6 Forest Act stands registered in PS Thathri and accused persons have been taken into custody for further investigation" said SSP Doda Zahid Manhas. Meanwhile DFO Bhaderwah T. B. Singh claimed that it was a joint operation by Forest Department and Police as they have started a crackdown against the timber Mafia and land encroachers in Chiralla range since last one week. However DFO does not rule out the involvement of some Forest officials and assured stern action against them if found guilty.
"We have taken the issue of illegal felling and encroachment of Forest land very seriously and in this connection, we have already rescued 24 canals of Forest land from the encroachers at compartment 4 in Tanta area of Chiralla range and registered a case against them, " said DFO Bhaderwah T. B. Singh adding that an explanation has been called from Range Officer Chiralla and Foresters posted there.
"Any activity in violation of Forest laws will not be allowed and offenders are being dealt with iron hand as today itself we have seized a JCB near tourist resort Gatha which was illegally being operated in forest land, said T. B. Singh adding that since 27th March, more than 400 timber scants have been seized beside three Forest officials stand suspended and nearly a dozen smugglers arrested. Meanwhile environmentalists and social workers are up in arms against the forest officials for their alleged involvement in facilitating timber smuggling and land encroachment on an alarming scale.
"On one hand Forest Minister has made a resolve that several thousand hectares of encroached Forest land will be retrieved and illegal deforestation won't be tolerated at any cast but on the other hand some corrupt forest officials have literally put both green Forest and Forest land on sale for their petty interests, alleged Fazal Alam Wani an Environmentalist and Sarpanch (village head) Geosti panchayat in Chiralla tehsil of District Doda adding that Range Officer Chiralla and Foresters are making mockery of their responsibility by facilitating illegal activity of looting green gold and and letting the Mafia to encroach Forest land at their will, as not only several houses are being built simultaneously at sewa village on Forest land but also dozens of green trees are being sawed down daily in Chirala range and the said Range Officer is getting his booty regularly for letting the illegal activity to go on.
Beside illegal green felling and encroachment in Chirala and Bhalesa Range of Bhaderwah Forest Division, reports of large scale green felling and massive encroachment of Forest land are also being reported from Siraj and Kuntwara Ranges of Doda Forest Division and Marmat Range of Batote Forest Division. It's notable to mention here that Geologists and soil Conservationist have more recently held unabated deforestation in Chinab Circle responsible for continuous landslides, sinking of land and massive soil erosion and have warned that Large-scale deforestation could cause irreparable loss to the region.