Poachers chop sandalwood trees

Forest Department pleads ignorance about matter as smugglers make hay

The image of the coffee valley is being tarnished by forest poachers who are axing down sandalwood trees in the Churchegudda reserve forest area.

The valley, ironically, is also known for naturally-grown sandalwood trees, and the area lies between Chikkamagaluru-Kadur Main Road, barely at a stone’s throw away from Chikkamagaluru town.

The reserve forest area – considered to be one of its kind – stretches across about 3,000 acres and supports a wide range of flora and fauna. The forest houses leopards, deer, wolves, foxes, wild buffaloes and peacocks among other animals and birds.

The local people, however, have been complaining that the forest resources are habitually cleared by poachers, as the reserve area is neglected by the Forest Department.

Residents of Lakya said that poaching in the reserve area is nothing new – the looting is being carried out for 20 to 30 years now. They even call a road in the area ‘sandalwood road’ as it is being used for the transportation of lorries carrying sandalwood logs.
A group of 15-20 sandalwood smugglers is active during nights, when the chopping down and transport of logs continues unabated.

There is a single forest guard to look after thousands of acres of trees, and he too is on contract. There are no checkposts near the reserve forest – in fact, the smugglers will not encounter any checkpost till the district border, which has proven a blessing for the poachers.

The smugglers, therefore, are used to easily transporting sandalwood logs to Bengaluru, Mysuru, and districts in North Karnataka, say the local residents.

If one steps into the woods, the person will find countless sandalwood trees chopped down and heaps of barks left behind by the poachers. Ironically, in spite of this, the Forest Department officials say they have no information on this.

Sandalwood in Goa

According to sources in the Forest Department, the poachers are smuggling to Goa the rich resource of sandalwood in the State.

Earlier, sandalwood was smuggled from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. With the governments in both states having banned axing of sandalwood trees, the industries too have closed down. In Goa, however, the industries are still running, and quality sandalwood is being used for manufacture of perfumes, soaps and talcum powder.

During the raids carried out by the department earlier, tonnes of sandalwood were confiscated. Now, only half to two kilogram of sandalwood is confiscated during raids. The worst and most disappointing part is that the poachers do not spare the tender plants too, say the sources.

The government rate for high quality sandalwood is Rs 4,500 a kg while in the black market it would be Rs 2,500 to Rs 3,000 a kg, add the sources.

No information

District Deputy Conservator for Forests Manik insisted that the Department had been provided no information about the forest poachers cutting down the sandalwood trees in Churchegudda. An area of 50 acres has been covered by fences for the protection of sandalwood trees, he added.