56 illegal timber shops sealed in the past week in Assam

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Around 56 illegal timber shops got sealed in the state in the past week. These timber shops were doing business without licences. The crackdown on such shops will continue.

The forest officials are on their toes after Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's recent review of forest activities in the state. The irregularities in the department came to the fore during the review meeting.

Some timber shops without licence spreading in all districts are the outlets that keep the illegal timber business thriving in the state. And these illegalities go on under the very noses of the DFOs (Divisional Forest Officers) who are at the helm of affairs in issuing licences to timber shops.

According to sources, 15 timber shops in Barpeta, ten in Sorbhog, six in Pathsala, 24 on Bohori etc., got sealed for running business without licences.

A high-level forest official said, "Of late, the department has stopped the renewal of timber shop licences and issuance of fresh ones. The department has sought relevant documents from the timber shops. The irregularities came to the fore when the many timber shops failed to produce the documents sought from them."

Apart from Guwahati, the mushroom growth of timber shops without licences is evident in districts with forests around. Such districts are Kamrup, Dhubri, Goalpara, Nagaon, Darrang etc. Such illegal shops make furniture at low cost, and that makes customers rush to them. The secret of the low-cost furniture is the flow of illegally felled trees coming to them.

According to official sources, sizing machines in some big timber shops in Guwahati and elsewhere in the state make the illegal timber business thrive. The permission for sizing machines is a violation of a standing Supreme Court order, the sources said.

According to the sources, the department permits a sizing machine of a particular length of the blade. However, some timber shops use blades of different sizes that saw illegal logs overnight. Once sawn, it is difficult to ascertain the legal status of timber, the sources added.

Many timber shops do not maintain any register of their stocks, nor do they issue cash memos.

The Chief Minister took the issue of permission for sizing machines despite the standing ban on them by the Supreme Court. He has sought a report from the department on this. He has also asked the department to take stringent measures against the rampant use of the illegal band sawmills in the sar areas in the state.

Talking to The Sentinel, a forest official said, "The mushroom growth of band sawmills in the riparian areas is a big threat to the state forest cover. The remaining forest cover in the state will suffer the worst if the government does not take some tangible measures to root out such evil forces, besides giving exemplary punishment to the corrupt forest officials involved in the illegal timber business."

Also Read: Illegal sawn timber seized in Digboi, 4 arrested

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