Three held for illegal felling of deodar trees

A team of the Forest Department has apprehended three individuals involved in illegal felling of deodar trees in Salooni area of Chamba district. Three offenders managed to escape from the spot under the cover of darkness.

According to reports, late last night, Forest Range Officer Hamid Khan, Forest Guards Lekh Raj and Virendra Kumar, along with forest personnel Suresh Kumar and Teju, were patrolling the Chakoli-Kandhwara road near Kuthed. During their patrol, they heard the sound of trees being axed in the Kuthed Reserved Forest. Acting swiftly, the team reached the site and found six individuals engaged in illegal logging. Upon seeing the officials, three suspects fled the scene, while the remaining three were caught along with the wood.

The Forest Department discovered that a total of five deodar trees had been felled—four classified as fourth-class trees and one as a fifth-class tree. The estimated value of the illegally cut wood is approximately Rs 1.5 lakh. Initially, the accused agreed to pay a fine, but later they refused.

The three individuals arrested have been identified as Bhagat Ram from Kuthed village in Diyur Panchayat; Rahul from Shail village; and Diwan Chand from Bhadol village. The remaining three suspects fled the scene.

Salooni Divisional Forest Officer Sushil Kumar Guleria said the department had filed a formal complaint at the local police station.

Interestingly, one of the arrested individuals is an SPO (Special Police Officer) in the Police Department and his name also figures in the waiting list for recruitment under the Van Mitra programme for the same forest beat.