The crime took place right under the nose of forest department. Inside job suspected.
5 Acres of evergreen forest was denuded by Timber poachers, in Mundrot Forest area of Padinalaknad Reserve Forest, a sub-cluster of Talakaveri Wildlife Sanctuary, which is a UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE site.
An alert youth, Cariappa(name changed to protect identity) from a nearby village noticed something amiss in the Mundrot Forest area in Padinalknad Reserve Forest. It seemed as if a patch of virgin forest was missing. Cariappa used google maps from a previous timeline and compared it with the latest one and his suspicion came true. A good stretch of evergreen forest was denuded by Timber poachers.
On 28th April, Cariappa informed about the crime to Thamoo Poovaiah of Kodagu Ekikarana Samiti(KES), an NGO which has relentlessly fought to protect the fragile ecosystem of Kodagu.
Thamoo Poovaiah contacted the Virajpet District Conservators of Forests(DCF) Jagannath. Poovaiah states that “the Virajpet DCF was least interested in taking notice and tried to ignore the issue. But the very next day, the DCF immediately visited the site.”
Poovaiah also informed the local media and they contacted the Conservator of Forests, Madikeri and got permission to visit the site inside the forest. When, members of Press & Poovaiah visited the site, it was clear for all to see that – what Cariappa had alleged was true.
It is alleged that the poachers were alerted about the visit of the Media persons and KES Members & to hide evidence, they tried to destroy the illegally felled timber by burning the wooden stumps and the logs on the crime site.
Poovaiah claims that: “People in the forest department alerted the poachers and that is why they tried to burn the stumps and logs to conceal evidence. There is a forest guard just few kilometres away and a Ranger too. How is it that the guard and ranger not know what was going on inside the forest ?. If these were normal poachers and were not hand in glove with some in the department, they would have simply fled. What was the need to burn the stumps and log ?. The department have also not suspended the Forest Guard and the Ranger for dereliction of duty”. Poovaiah added.
The forest department has filed an FIR and have named a firm “MYSURU FARMERS ENTERPRISES” and two individuals – Sunny Malebari from Kerala and “Late Abraham Joseph” in the FIR.
“We will find out whether it is private land or reserve forest. We will submit a chargesheet after proper investigation and then take the matter to the court”, the Virajpet DCF told The New Indian Express.
The DCF is feigning ignorance of the law by stating that he will find out whether it is private land or reserve forest. The land is within Talakaveri Wildlife Sanctuary. The law is very clear on this subject. If the land is inside the Sanctuary, be it private or forest land, no one is allowed to cut trees, as per the Forest Act, Poovaiah said.
Poovaiah has complained to Virajpet MLA A S Ponnana. It has to be seen if Ponnanna follows up on it and takes action against corrupt officials in the forest department.
