Deodar smuggling continues from Lawari Top

CHITRAL (INP): Timber Mafia is busy to smuggle precious infrastructure wood f Deodar from Lawari top forest just after its reopening. The smugglers have cut these trees in the size of up to 3 feet pieces so as to be easy in transportation and to justify it for smuggling to down districts. 

An official told INP Correspondent on condition of anonymity that during removal of snow from Lawari top so many Deodar trunks were recovered under avalanches and the mafias were busy to cut it in small pieces to supply it down districts. 

But no action has been taken by the forest department and its staff remained silent spectator. 

Forest check post at Ziarat near Lawari top has been found closed and there was no body to check and stop smuggling of the timber which shows that forest staff gives them free hand for smuggling of trees.

When the Divisional Forest officer Chitral Mr. Shaukat was contacted, he refused to give any comments on this issue before the media. 

Hence he said that some local people are royalty holders and they use these trunks as firewood. 

Hence he confirmed that smuggling is continuing from Arandu forest to Bajawar and Afghanistan. When he was informed that timber worth billion rupees lying at Drosh at the residence of an influential persons of the area and it is not clear that either they were cut legally or illegally, he remained silent on this issue. 

Social and political circles of Chitral have demanded from Chief Minister and secretary forest department for taking stern action against black sheep among forest staff and to stop smuggling of timber and its illegal cutting so as to save Chitral from deforestation for protecting it from soil erosion and tremendous flood.