Tribals block DFO, forest officials in Pattikkad

THRISSUR: A team of forest officials including the DFO and section forest officers who went into the reserved forest to inquire about the chopping of nearly 100 trees and smuggling of timber were blocked by tribals at a settlement at Thamaravella-chal in Pattikkad range here on Tuesday morning. A team of 30 protestors prevented officials including Thrissur DFO Gerogi P Mathachan, Range officer of Forest Flying Squad M S Surjith and six others from counting the stumps of the trees which were illegally chopped off and smuggled by the forest mafia allegedly with the help of the tribals.

The DFO told DC that the tribals and those residing at the scheduled caste colony were not willing to share any information about such mass smuggling of timber from the land in the reserved forest that the tribals use as per the Forest Rights Act. The stand-off between the tribals and Forest officials began at 10.30 a.m. and ended at 2 p.m. after Peechi police arrived and held talks with both the parties.

Forest officers had conducted inspections several times about the smuggling, the tribals alleged and added that they would not allow them to torture those in the settlement further. But the DFO said that without the knowledge of those in the settlement, the timber could  not be smuggled and therefore cases needed to be filed against them if they were not co-operating with the officials. Peechi police said that tribals had asked for the presence of cops during future inspections after which the situation was defused.