No illegal tree felling in Churah forest: Official
Churah Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Sushil Kumar Guleria on Tuesday said the planned logging operations in the Goongyas forest of the Churah forest division had been temporarily delayed due to some unforeseen circumstances and not because of illegal green felling.
The need to re-mark additional trees that had fallen during the monsoon season was the reason behind the delay, he added.
According to the DFO, the department had marked 690 dried up and fallen trees in the forest for logging in February and March after which the Himachal Pradesh Forest Development Corporation (HPFDC) awarded a tender to execute the work. However, before the felling could begin the contractor reported suspected illegal tree cutting in the forest. In response, a joint team, comprising officials from the Forest Department and HPFDC, was formed to investigate the matter.
“While no evidence of illegal felling is found after a thorough survey, hammer marks on some of the marked trees are found to be erased,” he added. The DFO noted that additional green trees had fallen during the monsoon season, necessitating further action. “We requested the higher authorities to suspend the logging work until we can re-mark and enumerate the fallen trees, which are estimated to number between 150 and 200, to prevent a theft of timber,” he added.
