86 forest rangers transferred, department asks transferred officers to join places of posting within 48 hours

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: A stern transfer order has kept the state Forest Department officials on their toes. In a massive-scale reshuffle, the department has transferred 86 forest rangers and asked them to report for duty at their new places of posting within 48 hours.

The department has transferred the forest rangers of the ranges, most of which have the dubious distinction for doing precious little to check the destruction of forest cover. The transferred rangers are of Rani, Dhekiajuli, Saikhowa, Palashbari, Golaghat, Sonapur, Lekhapani, Lumding, Bokakhat etc.

According to official rules, when an official gets transferred, the transfer order allows him at least seven days to join the new place of posting. However, in today's order, the department has asked the rangers to report for duty in the posted ranges within 48 hours, 'without fail'.

Sources said that the Government collected internal information on the activities in forest ranges in the state silently. Maybe, this transfer order is the outcome of the feedbacks so collected. The department has over 400 rangers.

Checking encroachment of forest land, tree felling and exploiting forest resources are among the prime responsibilities of a forest ranger. However, as often as not, most of the forest rangers in the state fail to do this duty scrupulously. A section of them has unholy nexuses with forest mafiosos.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma did warn the forest officials not to keep in touch with mafiosos. He asked them to do their assigned duties scrupulously. "You needn't wait on highways for sand-laden trucks," the Chief Minister made such a comment to forest officials in the recent past. A 2018-19 report says that 3.64 lakh hectares of the 13.59 lakh hectares reserve forest areas in the state are under encroachment.

A Government of India report says that Assam has lost 2388 sq km of the tree-covered area from 2001-2018. The blame for this goes to shifting cultivation (jhum), tree felling, encroachment etc.

The records of 2019 say that 6384 hectares of forest land got encroached upon in Kamrup Forest Division, 87218 hectares in Golaghat Forest Division and 37574 hectares in Sonitpur East Forest Division.

Also Read: Assam's Minister Ranoj Pegu Holds Review Meeting Of Forest Rights Act, 2006

Also Watch: