Massive timber scam buried in Anantnag, whistleblowers punished

To burry a massive timber scam in South Kashmir’s Anantnag district, Forest department and State Forest Corporation punished three lower grade employees for acting as whistleblowers.

However, no stringent action was initiated against the contractor who fell green trees in the name of extraction and was caught by the vigilant employees.

Pleading anonymity, victim employees told Early Times that they were made scapegoat instead of initiating action against the contractor.

Providing details, he said that on 12 of August last year he was given look after charge of compartment No 6 of Daksum Range.  “I joined on 12 August and on 15 august I along with my two employees started patrolling the compartment. During checking we found the contractor had cut down many green tress illegally,” he claimed.

Employee said that on 16^th of August we brought the issue of illegal felling into the notice of SFC Range Officer Farooq Ahmad Dar. “On submitted report to RO but then he asked me to change the contents and date of the report. I refused but later changed date of the report to 24 August 2018,”he claimed.

Employee claimed that he went to inform Conservator of Forests South Circle Tawheed Deva and Chief General Manager (CGM)Muneer Ahmad Shayir but both of them abused and labeled him as ‘informer’.

However, both the officers on being contacted refuted the said employee’s claims of having abused him

The said employee finally approached Divisional Forest Officer Anantnag, Syed Himayu Qadri, who according to him acted swiftly and visited the area along with his sub-ordinate officers. “He (DFO) was shocked to see green felling of trees,” said the employees.

“Then later we came to know that we have been penalized. A fine of rupees 60 thousands rupees was imposed on us three employees of SFC. Now we ask why we were penalized and why no action was initated against the contractor and why he wasn’t blacklisted?” he said.  

Employees said that all most all the compartments had witness large scale green felling last year but forest department didn’t order a checking.  “It’s a massive scam and it was buried by our senior officers,” they alleged.

Chief General Manager (CGM)SFC Muneer Ahmad Shayir told Early Times that the contractor was also penalized Divisional Forest Officer Anantnag, Syed Himayu Qadri for violating the norms. “A fine Rupees 3.5Lakhs was imposed on him. He has paid 1.5 lakh and rest amount is being recovered from him,” he said.

CGM said that employees were also fined for declaration of duty. “It is not about informing or not informing,” he said.

CGM said that SFC is going to blacklisted the contractor, however said that he was ‘poor’ and had cut down free trees to construct a road in woods.

He claimed that because of this incident two top officers of Forest department and SFC were also shifted.