Telangana: Forest officials demand weapons, establishment of forest stations

Forest officials insisted on eviction of Gutti Koyas habitations from forest areas and discourage political promises for regularization of fresh encroachments.

Hyderabad: After the brutal killing of Forest Range Officer Ch Srinivas Rao in Kothagudem, forest officials are demanding provision of arms and ammunition for self-protection, besides setting up forest stations at Divisional Level.

These demands were made during a high-level meeting chaired by Principal Chief Conservator of Forests RM Dobriyal here on Thursday.

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Citing several attacks on forest staff, especially frontline personnel, the officials demanded provision of arms and ammunition up to Forest Range Officers for self-protection. They also wanted establishment of forest stations at Division Level with required staff and infrastructure as was being done by Kerala Forest Department.

They insisted on eviction of Gutti Koyas habitations from forest areas and discourage political promises for regularization of fresh encroachments.

The officials also stressed on the need to amend the rules to declare the offences involving the encroachment as non-bailable offence. Field staff, who completed three years tenure have to be transferred to other areas and in case of vulnerable areas, the period has to be cut down to two years.

The PCCF assured that the issues raised by the department staff would be taken up with the government and addressed at the earliest.