POONCH: Deputy Commissioner Vikas Kundal today chaired a meeting here in the DC Office to review and discuss important forest-related issues. The Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) apprised the meeting about the functioning and achievements of the Forest Division Poonch. He highlighted that the district covers a geographical area of 1,674 square kilometers, with forested land comprising 951 square kilometers, which is 56% of the total area. The DFO noted that there are three territorial ranges: Haveli, Surankote, and Mendhar.
Key issues discussed included the demarcation of forest boundaries, forest fire management, Forest Rights Act (FRA) cases, and the potential for adventure tourism in designated forest tracks across the district. It was reported that out of 121 total forests, the survey and boundary pillar installation have been completed in 27. Deputy Commissioner Kundal directed the concerned revenue and forest officers to conduct joint surveys during the demarcation process and to expedite the construction of boundary pillars.
The meeting was attended by the Additional Deputy Commissioner of Poonch, the Assistant Commissioner Revenue (ACR), DFO (Territorial), Tehsildars, and all Range Officers.
