Hundreds of men and women braving intense heat on Tuesday recovered a huge consignment of precious timber near the Van Gashti Chowki (forest patrol camp) at Saidup in the core area of the Palamu tiger reserve.
Sources said it was a role reversal as it used to be a recovery of timber by PTR officials from the people in good old days but here villagers recovered it which sources said left nothing to shame the unscrupulous officials of the PTR.
Latehar district president of Adivasi Sengal Andolan Victor Kerketta said, “This recovery of huge consignment of timber leaves no one in doubt that felling of precious trees like saal, biya in core area of PTR’s Saidup etc has the overt and covert support of the unscrupulous officials of the PTR.”
Kerketta is the member of the advisory committee of the Palamu tiger reserve and holds weight too. He said, “People recovered 50 pieces of choukhat (door frame) of saal wood, 40 slippers of biya trees, 04 heavy logs of biya whose combined market value may be between 8 to 10 lakhs of rupees.”
A veteran social activist Kanhai Singh who was a part of the recovery crowd of people said, “What raises our eyebrows is that felled timbers were being sawn near the forest patrol camp in a big saw stall.”
Kanhai Singh said when this was questioned the forest guards there at the forest patrol camp said “These timbers are already seized ones and nothing illicit.”
Hotly contesting this blatant falsehood of the forest guards Kanhai Singh quipped, “Can a forest official have a right to mutate a seized timber from log to slipper to door frame as every seized item of timber is to be retained in its original form which is an exhibit till the disposal of cases in the court of law?”
He further said a seized timber is numbered/stamped by officials and recorded in official seizure register mentioning its length, width, girth and when villagers demanded this to be shown the PTR officials just looked all blank.
This social activist further said “ How come a huge saw mill was there near the forest patrol camp as no saw mill can be so set up without permission/ license and can any forest official explain whose saw mill was this and forwhat purposes the timbers were so sawn?”
Head of the forest force (HoFF) cum Principal Chief Conservator Of Forest (PCCF) Shashi Nandkeolyar said, “I have come to know of this episode. It is really a serious thing. I will seek a detailed report in this connection from field director PTR.”
