Punish, don’t promote, tainted officers

Karnataka’s forests do not appear to be in safe hands, no matter which party is in government. While officers who diverted forest lands in the past have gone unpunished, the latest instance is that of Y Chakrapani, an officer who had been charged with permitting illegal felling of teak trees worth crores of rupees in Kodagu, who was recently posted as Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF), Bengaluru (Rural).

Following a news report in DH, the government late on Wednesday suspended the officer, but the fact that he was given a coveted post while charges are pending against him is worrying.

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The case dates back to April 2022, when Chakrapani approved felling of 66 teak trees, though the request was for just six trees. Most of the trees were 80-100 years old. The officer not only granted permission without verifying the land records but also issued the transit permit to transport the trees. Following a complaint, a junior officer seized a part of the timber worth Rs 1 crore.

While the Karnataka Forest Act allows compounding of offences where the value of the property is not more than Rs 50,000, in this case the DFO compounded the offence and allowed the culprits to go scot-free by imposing compounding fee of Rs 1 lakh.

While forest lands are routinely diverted for development projects by the government, a bigger concern is the illegal conversion by officers. A classic case is the conversion of 445 acres of forest land into revenue land by the revenue department in 2014 in Gulakmale village of Bengaluru South taluk. The land was allotted to private parties, with a palatial villa being constructed on a five-acre plot bang on an elephant corridor.

Though forest officers have been flagging the issue since 2018, no action has been taken in the matter. Sometime ago, a committee set up by the National Green Tribunal had recommended initiation of criminal proceedings against former MLAs K G Bopaiah and Appachu Ranjan, former MLC S G Medappa and other officers in a case relating to felling of trees to lay an illegal road through the Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary in Kodagu. The file continues to gather dust.

Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre should review all such pending cases and initiate stringent action against both politicians and bureaucrats who have indulged in or permitted of diversion of forest land, mining within forest areas, illegal felling of trees, etc. The government must demonstrate zero tolerance toward such illegalities, starting with taking the case against Chakrapani to its logical conclusion.