Lakshmipur, 4th Sept 2025: In the Lakshmipur forest range of Koraput district, over 350 teak trees have allegedly been felled in the Bandikara forest beat area. Currently, the biggest question is who cut these valuable trees and under what circumstances. The Forest Department has begun an investigation into when and by whom the rare teak trees were cut, and where the felled timber was taken.
Teak plantation over 30 hectares of land was carried out in the Bandikara beat protected forest area during 2002–03. These teak trees have now grown significantly. It is suspected that timber mafias may have gradually cut down some of the trees. Evidence suggests that over 450 teak trees have been illegally felled from a designated protected forest zone.
Serious Questions Arise: Was Department Staff Involved?
The scale of tree felling has raised serious questions:
Who cut such a large number of trees?
Was there any involvement of forest department personnel?
How did the security guards, foresters, and other forest staff not notice this?
Why did the Forest Protection Committee not report it?
If the timber mafias cut and smuggled the wood at night, why did the department not file a case earlier?
No Case Filed During Previous Ranger’s Tenure
The former range officer, who is now retired, stated that he cannot confirm whether the trees were cut during his tenure because the forester or guards in charge at that time never reported any such incident. Hence, no official case was registered then.
Current Ranger Confirms Incident, Investigation Underway
The current ranger, Bikash Patra, confirmed that teak trees were indeed felled in the Bandikara protected forest. He stated that 18 logs have been seized, and an investigation is currently in progress.
As he is new to the post, he said he was not fully aware of the extent of illegal felling when he joined. However, an inquiry is ongoing involving all departmental staff. If it is found that any staff member was negligent or complicit, strict action will be taken against them.
He also added that surveying is ongoing to determine the exact number of trees cut.