Arunachal: Assam bound illegal timber raft of 155 logs via Siang River intercepted
DFO warns field staff of serious action if found taking bribe from timber smugglers
PASIGHAT ( By Maksam Tayeng )- In a major crush down on the illegal timber supply racket toward Assam via Siang River by rafting, the joint team of D. Ering Memorial Wildlife Sanctuary’s Sibiyamukh Wildlife Range and Mebo Forest Range under Pasighat Forest Division intercepted and damaged 155 logs of timber near Tarotamak and Siang river confluence under Mebo Sub-Division on Tuesday.
Initially, the long and huge raft of illegal timber logs ‘Bombax ceiba’ which is called ‘Ximolu’ in Assamese, Shimul in Bengali and ‘Singgi’ in local Adi language was detected by the patrolling team of Sibiyamukh Wildlife Range based at Sibiya-Chapori/Siboguri camp on Monday afternoon while on routine patrolling duty in the Siang river along Assam-Arunachal boundary.
Similar illegalities of driftwood timber logging were also detected and reported recently by the joint team of Eco-Development Committee/Community Surveillance & Monitoring Team of D. Ering Wildlife Sanctuary led by U.S. Perme, President of the committee from Sibiyamukh WL range fringe village unit and field staff from Sibiyamukh WL range.
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After intercepting the timber rafts, the patrolling team of wildlife informed the Range Officer, Sibiyamukh WL range, O. Mize who in turn informed the RO Mebo Forest Range, D. Koyu, as the source of the timbers were somewhere in a location between Seram and Kongkul/Padan village which comes under Seram Beat of Mebo Forest Range under Pasighat Forest Division.
On getting the shared information, Mebo Range RO, D. Koyu immediately swung into action and rushed his team to join with the team of RO Sibiyamukh of D. Ering WLS and those seized timber logs were damaged by using chain-saw machine as there has no provision or support to lift the timber from river.
As per RO Sibiyamukh and RO Mebo Range, five contractual labourers from Dhakuakhana Sub-Division of Lakhimpur district, Assam who were paid to transport the timber raft via Siang river on contract of Rs. 5000 per person. While investigation is on to find out the actual timber operators, those five labourers were let off after taking written assurance not to repeat and not to return to Arunachal Pradesh for similar illegal timber rafting even if any timber operator offers to do so again.
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Meanwhile, DFO Pasighat Forest Division, Hano Moda has taken the incident seriously and has strictly warned the field staff not to take bribes from any timber operators/mafias. Any field staff having nexus with illegal timber operators will be seriously dealt with, said Moda on getting the hints of certain field staff from both territorial forest and wildlife staff taking money from the timber operators.
He has also directed the RO Mebo for intensive checking of such illegalities to prevent any such illegal logging and rafting attempt in future while also closely identifying/investigating the corrupt field staff who have links with the timber mafias.
It is worth mentioning here that timber operators from both Arunachal Pradesh and Assam use the Siang river as a medium of transporting timber logs by rafting. In fact huge timbers are transported via rivers rather than via roads with trucks, as it is easier and cheaper as well as less risk free for timber mafias of getting caught/intercepted.
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And due to inadequate infrastructures like modern day motor boats/speed boats, such incidents are often not followed up once the timber rafts are flowing down from the middle of the river. However, incompetency and poor integrity of field staff are also mostly responsible for such rampant illegalities, as in many of such illegal timber operations; corrupted field staff are found to be directly or indirectly involved who let such illegalities go on just for a few bucks. Because without their nexus, the timber operation by rafting is not possible, as it takes days together to lift/carry the timber logs near the Siang river bank and ready the logs in raft even after felling and logging the trees.
An officer from the forest department with anonymity also revealed that corrupted field staff who have nexus with the timber mafia are often found misleading the department in most cases who intentionally fail to detect timber logging/raft ready sites.
They either take the patrolling team in the wrong direction or they alert the timber operators in advance even if their higher authorities direct them for operation against the timber logging/rafting after getting tip off from the sources.
And in some cases, such corrupt forest field staffs even goes on conspiring against the informers from public by revealing the names of informers (known from the higher authorities on good faith) to the timber mafias/operators who in turn targets and warns the informer so that nexus between the two continues and illegal timber trades gets them profit.
