Tripura: Forest Dept to form intelligence wing to curb deforestation

Agartala, May 1 (IANS) In a bid to curb deforestation, illegal felling of trees and timber smuggling, the Tripura Forest Department would create its own intelligence wing and strengthen its own protection unit, Minister Animesh Debbarma said on Thursday.

Forest Minister Debbarma said that initially, the Forest Department would take personnel from the Tripura Police to deploy them in the proposed intelligence wing of the Forest Department, but subsequently, the department would recruit fresh staff for the intelligence division.

“I have also requested Chief Minister Manik Saha to deploy a reasonable number of Tripura State Rifles (TSR) troops to protect the forest and forest produce. These TSR personnel would work under senior forest officials,” the minister told IANS.

Trained in counter-insurgency operations, the elite TSR has 14 battalions. Debbarma, who also holds the Science, Technology and Environment Department, said that to protect the forest and its resources, major steps must be taken immediately.

He said that Tripura’s main resource forests have become vulnerable because of illegal felling of trees, timber smuggling, and various other illicit activities.

“The prevailing situation in the forest areas appears to be challenging for the forest guards and other forest officials. Smuggling, illegal felling of trees, poaching, and human activities on protected forest areas have increased in multiple ways in the state.”

On Wednesday, the minister at a function at the Tripura State Forest Academy in Hatipara in West Tripura, handed over 58 motorcycles to forest range officials. The Minister underlined that development efforts must not come at the cost of destroying forests.

“Protecting forests is essential for protecting human life. True development must revolve around conservation, not deforestation,” he stated.

Pointing out that forests cover nearly 62 per cent of Tripura’s landmass, Debbarma questioned the necessity of the state’s growing number of national highways, many of which have led to extensive tree felling.

The minister earlier said that since January 2022, and until recently, 11,460 old trees were officially felled for the widening of various national highways in Tripura.

He said that before cutting down the trees, the state government had taken permission from the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and followed the other formalities.

Debbarma further said that the Tripura Chief Minister on July 5 last year led the state-level mass plantation drive with the mission of ‘5 lakh saplings in 5 minutes’ to increase the forest cover in the northeastern state.

Debbarma said that before the state-level mass plantation drive, the Forest Department had distributed over seven lakh saplings among students, clubs, organisations, banks, and central and state security forces.

“Our effort to plant trees would not be limited to a single event. The mass plantation drive would continue in the upcoming monsoon period and beyond,” the minister stated.

--IANS

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