Editorial: War on forests

BSF personnel caught smuggling wood points towards a scandalous phenomenon in Kashmir.
Ever since militancy erupted in our state, many brutal things happened under the cover of fighting it. Not just life and routine of Kashmir became a casualty to the unbridled powers given to security forces, but our resources too were subjected to a large scale loot and plunder. The news about Border Security Forces personnel being caught while smuggling illicit timber by the Forest officials in Bandipora district, north Kashmir, is a miniscule part of a bigger phenomenon. There is an eyewitness account that has provided the details of it to the media. The incident is not an isolated one. From past two decades we have been a witness to a large scale felling of trees by unscrupulous elements, both civil and defence. Since the forest areas have been made, literally out of bounds for a common man, these unscrupulous elements get a free hand in inflicting heavy damage to our forests. All of it may not get reported, rather very little trickles down to media circles but the general impression among the people in Kashmir is that security forces are taking an undue advantage of the circumstances and are involved in stealing the green gold at an enormous level. The concerned civil officials find themselves in a helpless situation because in the border areas and the forest divisions Army and Para military forces are the real masters. No one has the power to stop them from smuggling the wood from the forests of Kashmir. Since in the absence of any civilian check security forces enjoy unrestricted access to forest areas and the fact that none dares check their vehicles, the cutting of trees and smuggling the wood to the areas where they are needed is an easy affair for the security forces. The news report about Bandipora incident also makes it clear. When the Forest officials, according to eyewitness account, fearing reprisal seized just one log and let the troopers carry the remaining three to their camp, how can one expect that the smuggling of wood can be stopped? When the Forest officials know that the wood is being smuggled for making furniture, which is later carried to the residential houses of security forces outside J&K and still fail to take any action, who is going to help us out? Although it has not still been reported, but people apprehend that there is a nexus between artisans, labourers, mostly from outside state, and some people among security forces to use the wood smuggled from forests for various works in the security forces’ camps. Hefty bills are later framed against the work done. This way a patterned plunder of our forests is occurring, and there seems to be no end to it, unless the higher officials of the various security forces organisation, including Army, take cognisance of the matter. It is only then that the great environmental catastrophe can be avoided. Also the NGOs working for the preservation of environment can contribute by taking up the issue at national and international level. Even the political parties of Kashmir, both mainstream and separatist, can bring the matter into public domain and let the world know about it. Unless all pool their efforts the great game of plunder is not going to stop.