Delay in action to Thandi Choi forest scam is helping the culprits, scammers

Immediate action is need in this scam!

• The Principal Secretary to the J&K Government, Department of Forest, Ecology & Environment Mr Dheeraj Gupta is much concerned over this scam and would take action within hours.
•  They are delaying to provide enough time to culprits to erase the evidences and they are smuggling the illegally felled Khair wood from the spot to other places in small vehicles.

jj correspondent

Jammu, Apr 09: Why the senior officers of Forest department including Chief Conservator of Forest, Jammu and Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, J&K are mute spectator in the biggest forest Khair trees felling scam in Thandi Choi? Why are these senior officers Chief Conservator of Forest, Jammu and Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, J&K shying to take action against the Block Forest Officer who deliberately signed a concocted report openly denying for forest land whereas in actual there is a big chunk of Forest land? Is Block Forest officer of Thandi Choi so powerful that Chief Conservator of Forest, Jammu and Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, J&K are helpless in taking action against him? These are very hard-hitting question irritating in the mind of people and people are expecting reply from Chief Conservator of Forest, Jammu and Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, J&K to clear their positions.
The illegal felling of Khair and other trees from the Forest land situated at Thandi Choi has not become a talk of the Jammu & Kashmir but it has earned lot of embarrassment for the department and government too. Some of the senior officers wanted to bury the case of illegal feeling of Khair and other trees and they opted to remain silent over the issue of one of the biggest scams in the history of J&K Forest department. The entire administration is worried but these officers are in deep slumber.
The Conservator of Forest, Jammu East Circle has tried to take the action against the culprits but the things are not easy for him as he has very limited powers to take action. The senior officers are not in mood to unearth the scam. Initially they said there is no forest land in Thandi Choi but around 10000 Kanals is Forest Land, whereas, evidence is available on JK Land Record Site.
The false report prepared to mislead all, especially the enquiry committee but the officers are shying to take action against the culprit Block Officer who signed this report. There are more evidences like pictures of destroyed and buried stumps (evidence) clicked by inquiry committee first and then Forest Protection Force during their second visit. There are clear photos of illegal felled khair trees, destroyed stumps, JCB Track with GPS Coordinates locating inside the forest land.
The intriguing part of this scam story is that the Farmer Files sanctioned for Khair felling are also full of irregularities as they (Farmers) don’t have that much trees in their proprietor land for which the permission is given, which is the start of forest scam and in this lieu they felled hundreds of trees from forest land. A complaint in this regard is pending in CF office.
These are sufficient to prove scam in Thandi Choi Forest land but it needs will power. It is being believed that a multi-crore organised scam has been committed by Forest and Revenue officials with a joint venture and role of police is also shabby. Illegal felled Khair trees of Crores are lying in the village which needs to be seized immediately by the authority but no one has taken this step so far.
Further all field officials from guard to ranger in that area should be sacked till the enquiry completed as there are enough evidences against them. The delay in action is giving them ample time to destroy evidences. The reports are pouring in this office that still Khair wood is being smuggled in private cars from the spots.
The dire need is that honest and experienced team should be constituted for its detailed enquiry, besides the role of demarcation wing is very mandatory and some officials who have served there in past should be sought to trace out the intensity of forest as 1000s of trees from forest has been felled.
One forest official involved in the scam while talking to our correspondent has agreed that a very big nexus is working in this scam and he exuded that it is the big reason that no one is daring to take action after having so much evidences.
The Principal Secretary to the J&K Government, Department of Forest, Ecology & Environment Mr Dheeraj Gupta said that the action would speak very soon (within hours) when he will see the evidences. He said that not a single person will be spared if found involved in this scam. He was very particular for the safety of the Forest and forest land and hoped that he would get help from everyone to save the Forest land.
I twice tried to contact with Chief Conservator of Forest, Jammu Mr BM Sharma to get his views over this one of the biggest scam in the J&K Forest but my cal remained unattended by him, the reason better known to him.