Smugglers having a field day in Poba RF Correspondent JONAI, Nov 8 The growing strain on forest wealth including timber, sand-gravel and hunting of wild animals, has posed a grave threat to the Poba Reserve Forest. The alleged nexus of some Forest officials with vested circles of Jonai Territorial Range have made the task easier for the smugglers in the reserve forest.
Smugglers allegedly in league with some unscrupulous Forest officials are involved in this destructive mission, a section of local people of Jonai, including members of NGOs have alleged, adding that all the felled logs are either transported through Siang river or directly supplied to two illegal saw mills operating under the very nose of the two Forest range offices.
Mention may be made that the wealth of Poba RF has come under tremendous pressure and following the alleged cavalier attitude of the authorities concerned towards the cause of protection and conservation, smugglers are reportedly having a field day in this RF. Poba which was declared a reserve forest by a gazette notification in 1924, boasts of many species of valuable trees, rare and endangered animals and ornamental plants, besides medicinal herbs.
Expressing serious concern over the unabated plundering of the RFs timber wealth, a group of senior citizens including the NGO members said, Forest officials entrusted with the protection and conservation of forests should be true to their profession in the greater interest of keeping our rich repository of biodiversity intact.
Territorial forest has sustained a severe blow with the growing requirement of timber in construction-related activities, but with little heed being paid to the protective and aesthetic aspects of forest, productive aspects of forests is being exploited to the detriment of ecological balance.
