Forest officials put trees on sale in Bhaderwah Division (Jammu & Kashmir)
By Ajmer Alam Wani-
By Ajmer Alam Wani-
Form pictures available with JK Monitor and the details disclosed by the sources, it has been evident that the Forest Department officials are the worst enemies for the forest wealth (Green Gold) particularly when it comes to Forest Division Bhaderwah. Instead of protecting the fully grown green trees, the Forest Deptt officials in Forest Range Chiralla, Compartment Number-1 and 2 of Bhaderwah Division are reported openly selling the green gold trees to the people after charging the money.
Sources said that, Forest Guard and other immediate senior officials have charged the money from the people who are constructing houses and dumping the wood for other different uses and allowing them to cut down the Green Gold, (fully green trees) in broad day light.
Sources disclose that these officials are charging the money on the pretext of managing permit to these people. Permit is official way of selling the trees to the people. Worth mentioning here that the permit is granted for cutting the dry trees not the green trees but here the case is entirely different. Sources said that these officials neither submit the collected money to the Department and nor manage the permit to the people from whom they charge the money.
According to the sources, these officials charge money as per their wish and allow the people to cut down the trees of choice.
Unfortunately, such issues were highlighted in the past too but the higher ups in the department always were convinced by a paper which were written by same officials in pretext of inquiry and got signed by those people whom they allow to cut down the trees.
Reports reaching to this correspondent indicate that this time too, these officials have managed some clarification papers form the forest mafia people, where they have mentioned that no loss has been suffered to forest in this area. Relevant to mention here that some of these Forest Mafia people have managed their entry into Panchayat system as members and now misusing their position to damage the natural resources and encroaching the forest land also.
No doubt the Government of Jammu and Kashmir, time to time has initiated several steps, as people read in newspapers and in speeches of ministers, calming to focus on eradicating the menace of timber smuggling, forest land encroachments, wildlife protection and preservation of environment in the State.
But the ground reality is far away and the slogans and claims of the concerned Ministers and the officials always proved hollow.
During the last several decades the practice is continued and the young green trees have been shortened to ground and the land has been converted into agriculture land by the land encroachers' mafia in Bhaderwah Forest Division, where Chiralla forest Range has suffered the damages to wildlife, natural flora and fauna and ecological balance badly.
Though the land encroachers' mafia operative in the area is not so powerful but the fact is that forest officials deputed in the area are not only incompetent but also corrupt. Earlier they were not making any effort to visit the area thus leave the forest at the mercy of enemies of Green Gold who enjoy cutting green trees at their tender age.
And now, when the people and some social activists joined this reporter to highlight this menace and some sections of the media also started highlighting this grave issue, the lower rung forest officials started visiting the area, but the situation instead of improving is turning ugly.
They visit, but seldom and collect the money from Green Gold enemies for the distraction of forests wealth and inform their officers that everything is going in right direction all over without mentioning a bit about the encroachments.
During the last several years the forest land encroachments and cutting of trees has gone rampage but unfortunately no one is there to check it.
The state government and the Minister concerned make tall claims before the media and in meetings assuring to do wonders but if one visits the area and have a glance of the condition of forest area, it becomes clear that the JK Govt, Forest Minister and the officials concerned at the higher level are in deep slumber which is not only zeroing our forests but also threatening the very existence of wildlife.
As the wildlife has been disturbed due to the forest cutting, the wild animals are posing great threat to the inhabitation near to forests as their stay places get disturbed or damaged.
Sources said that the land encroachers since decades are working on a systematic strategy.
They either put the forest under fire or cut out the skin around trunk of the trees which results in drying the tree. Later these partially dried up trees are cut down and used for domestic fuel and the land is cleared of trunks and left out tree roots. Than after the land is converted into agriculture land. This all goes in a well organized manner and the land encroachers have no fear in doing so as they know no one is going to visit the area to check them.
Ironically forest officials deputed in the areas who were directed by the higher authorities on few occasions, that too, after receiving some strong complaints and stand against these land encroachments are not in a position to identify their departmental land (Forest Land), which is not only unfortunate but a matter of great concern.
The officials should have been updated with their records but such attitude and working style of the officials speaks otherwise and indicates that forest land has no caretakers.
This speaks volumes about the dedication and punctuality of forest officials and justifies the claims of Govt, if not in the right direction but in the contradiction! It has been since decades the forest land has not been demarcated by the department yet the Ministers claim of protecting and preserving the Green Gold. How is it possible? If the officials of a department are so much ignorant about the area they are supposed to protect, than how comes it possible, that the initiatives of the government claiming to eradicate menace of timber smuggling and preserving environment would guarantee results.
The Forest Minister has to wake-up to the situation and make the first move at earliest ensuring speedy results. The need of the hour is to go for fresh demarcation of the Forest Land area and set Forest Protection Posts in such areas so the forest land could be evacuated from the encroachers and further encroachments could be checked. Otherwise the day is not far behind when the entire forest area would be converted into a desert. No doubt such move by encroachers will also threaten their own survival. After reading this entire story, officials may question the authenticity and may show the signed papers to the top brass this everything is ok in the area, but to counter their lie we have attached sufficient photographs with this news, which leave no room for them to say ‘ALL IS WELL’ in the area, as they used to say earlier !
FOREST PROTECTION FORECE
Government must reward the Forest Protection Force (FPF) guys who acted tough despites pressure from the several quarters and seized the timbers and cut trees which were lying on the ground. Such guys should be awarded for their bold and brave steps so they get encouragement and confidence to go tough against enemies of nature.
Sources disclose that these officials are charging the money on the pretext of managing permit to these people. Permit is official way of selling the trees to the people. Worth mentioning here that the permit is granted for cutting the dry trees not the green trees but here the case is entirely different. Sources said that these officials neither submit the collected money to the Department and nor manage the permit to the people from whom they charge the money.
According to the sources, these officials charge money as per their wish and allow the people to cut down the trees of choice.
Unfortunately, such issues were highlighted in the past too but the higher ups in the department always were convinced by a paper which were written by same officials in pretext of inquiry and got signed by those people whom they allow to cut down the trees.
Reports reaching to this correspondent indicate that this time too, these officials have managed some clarification papers form the forest mafia people, where they have mentioned that no loss has been suffered to forest in this area. Relevant to mention here that some of these Forest Mafia people have managed their entry into Panchayat system as members and now misusing their position to damage the natural resources and encroaching the forest land also.
No doubt the Government of Jammu and Kashmir, time to time has initiated several steps, as people read in newspapers and in speeches of ministers, calming to focus on eradicating the menace of timber smuggling, forest land encroachments, wildlife protection and preservation of environment in the State.
But the ground reality is far away and the slogans and claims of the concerned Ministers and the officials always proved hollow.
During the last several decades the practice is continued and the young green trees have been shortened to ground and the land has been converted into agriculture land by the land encroachers' mafia in Bhaderwah Forest Division, where Chiralla forest Range has suffered the damages to wildlife, natural flora and fauna and ecological balance badly.
Though the land encroachers' mafia operative in the area is not so powerful but the fact is that forest officials deputed in the area are not only incompetent but also corrupt. Earlier they were not making any effort to visit the area thus leave the forest at the mercy of enemies of Green Gold who enjoy cutting green trees at their tender age.
And now, when the people and some social activists joined this reporter to highlight this menace and some sections of the media also started highlighting this grave issue, the lower rung forest officials started visiting the area, but the situation instead of improving is turning ugly.
They visit, but seldom and collect the money from Green Gold enemies for the distraction of forests wealth and inform their officers that everything is going in right direction all over without mentioning a bit about the encroachments.
During the last several years the forest land encroachments and cutting of trees has gone rampage but unfortunately no one is there to check it.
The state government and the Minister concerned make tall claims before the media and in meetings assuring to do wonders but if one visits the area and have a glance of the condition of forest area, it becomes clear that the JK Govt, Forest Minister and the officials concerned at the higher level are in deep slumber which is not only zeroing our forests but also threatening the very existence of wildlife.
As the wildlife has been disturbed due to the forest cutting, the wild animals are posing great threat to the inhabitation near to forests as their stay places get disturbed or damaged.
Sources said that the land encroachers since decades are working on a systematic strategy.
They either put the forest under fire or cut out the skin around trunk of the trees which results in drying the tree. Later these partially dried up trees are cut down and used for domestic fuel and the land is cleared of trunks and left out tree roots. Than after the land is converted into agriculture land. This all goes in a well organized manner and the land encroachers have no fear in doing so as they know no one is going to visit the area to check them.
Ironically forest officials deputed in the areas who were directed by the higher authorities on few occasions, that too, after receiving some strong complaints and stand against these land encroachments are not in a position to identify their departmental land (Forest Land), which is not only unfortunate but a matter of great concern.
The officials should have been updated with their records but such attitude and working style of the officials speaks otherwise and indicates that forest land has no caretakers.
This speaks volumes about the dedication and punctuality of forest officials and justifies the claims of Govt, if not in the right direction but in the contradiction! It has been since decades the forest land has not been demarcated by the department yet the Ministers claim of protecting and preserving the Green Gold. How is it possible? If the officials of a department are so much ignorant about the area they are supposed to protect, than how comes it possible, that the initiatives of the government claiming to eradicate menace of timber smuggling and preserving environment would guarantee results.
The Forest Minister has to wake-up to the situation and make the first move at earliest ensuring speedy results. The need of the hour is to go for fresh demarcation of the Forest Land area and set Forest Protection Posts in such areas so the forest land could be evacuated from the encroachers and further encroachments could be checked. Otherwise the day is not far behind when the entire forest area would be converted into a desert. No doubt such move by encroachers will also threaten their own survival. After reading this entire story, officials may question the authenticity and may show the signed papers to the top brass this everything is ok in the area, but to counter their lie we have attached sufficient photographs with this news, which leave no room for them to say ‘ALL IS WELL’ in the area, as they used to say earlier !
FOREST PROTECTION FORECE
Government must reward the Forest Protection Force (FPF) guys who acted tough despites pressure from the several quarters and seized the timbers and cut trees which were lying on the ground. Such guys should be awarded for their bold and brave steps so they get encouragement and confidence to go tough against enemies of nature.
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