Jalandhar, January 4
Faced with shortage of staff, lack of government supplies and sufficient funds for the wildlife and the non-availability of trained personnel to provide vital treatment to rescued wild animals, the Forest Department Jalandhar seems to be in the process of breakdown. And with the winters in full swing, the department is facing trouble as more animals stray in winters due to deficiency of food and destruction of their protective habitat owing to deforestation.

Interestingly, unlike Ropar, Pathankot, Hoshiarpur, Ferozepur and Patiala, the Jalandhar district never had any post of District Forest Officer (DFO) wildlife. The DFO Territorial looks after the Wildlife Department also. And as is obvious, additional charges brings along its disadvantages too.

While the old employees are gradually retiring, no new posts are being filled. There have been zilch new appointments after 1990. In Jalandhar district, there are 56 posts for forest guards. But, at present, only 23 are filled. Surprisingly, there is only one forest guard, against 8 posts, in Phillaur and Nawanshahr constituency each.

“The case with Block Officers and Range Officers is a bit better. Not because the government has made the appointments but because of the promotion of Forest Guards to upper posts. They (the state government authorities) haven’t introduced appointments on contractual basis as yet but seem to be working on the same lines. Otherwise there is no other valid reason visible for not filling up the required posts,” said an official of the department, on the condition of anonymity.

As the staff is insufficient, employees are asked to carry out the additional duties, without any extra monetary benefits. “We have to perform the added duties because the work has to go on. The problem escalates further when we are deputed on election duty from time to time. Sometimes, we even get orders to make and deliver voter identity cards,” said another official of the department.

Furthermore, the Territorial Department doesn’t get sufficient funds to carry out the additional responsibilities of the Wildlife Department. “We use some of the money allocated to carry out the plantation drive. We had sent a letter requesting Rs 1 lakh for the rescue operations. Two months have passed; the reply is still awaited,” informed the sources. “Around Rs 2,500 are spent on rescuing a sambar and almost everyday there are one or two such cases, in the winter season. Where should the money come from?” asked a Range Officer.

Faced with the dearth of staff and funds, the employees haplessly shift the burden of wildlife protection to the mercy of God. Lack of special hospitals designated for the treatment of the rescued wild animals makes the problem worse. “At least, there should be a basic provision of some staff trained in animal science to provide the much needed first-aid to the injured animal. Local veterinary doctor (under the Department of Animal Husbandry) has to be contacted for the purpose. Often, they are not available on time which, at times, lead to death of the animal,” the official added.

But the Animal Husbandry Department has valid excuse. As many as 23 posts of veterinary doctors and 57 posts of veterinary inspectors (pharmacists) are vacant in Jalandhar alone. Already loaded with extra responsibilities, they find it difficult to meet the challenges.

Due to the unavailability of special hospitals and lack of required provisions in the government veterinary hospitals, the rescued animals are sometimes shifted to animal shelters being run by NGOs.

“Such cases are not uncommon, especially during extreme seasons. Why should the animals get strayed at first place? If they do, why aren’t there any hospitals or trained medical officers for their treatment? It seems as if the animal protection laws are not made for providing care and protection to the wild animals but just for the sake of making new departments and gulping down huge funds!” commented Chander Bhushan of People For Animals.

Jalandhar, January 4
Jalandhar-based Counter Intelligence (CI) wing has unearthed a synthetic drug manufacturing unit in the Baddi industrial area of Solan district in Himachal Pradesh. The machinery and other equipments used for the manufacturing the drug (Methamphetamine) have also been confiscated.

This breakthrough happened after three persons arrested by the CI with the said worth Rs 90 crore besides arms and ammunition last month, spilled the beans.

Opinderjeet Singh Ghumman, AIG, Counter Intelligence, said two suspects, identified as Narinder Kumar Aggarwal of Sakhan in Barnala and Pankaj Kumar of Mohalla Peelbad in Sunam, who were arrested with the contraband, disclosed that they used to work for Jagdish Bhola, an international narcotic smuggler.

They admitted to have set up a plant in Chunni village in Fatehgarh Sahib district to manufacture methamphetamine. After the arrest of Jagdish, alias Bhola, at Mumbai by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), all the laboratory equipments along with chemicals required to manufacture the drug was shifted from Fatehgarh Sahib to Baddi in district Solan of Himachal Pradesh.

The Counter Intelligence staff recovered the whole laboratory equipments required to manufacture the synthetic drug that was kept in a rented shed, the AIG added.

The CI wing had seized 18 kg of methamphetamine, .32 bore revolvers and cartridge from Pawan and Narinder. The duo were arrested with the contraband while travelling in a Pajero on Doraha road in Ludhiana.

The CI staff had also recovered 4 kg of narcotics from Sanjeev who was driving Honda City (DL-3C-AY-4719) on the Jalandhar-Partapura village road on January 1. A case under various provisions of the NDPS Act and the Arms Act was registered against them in Amritsar.