Tree stealing continues unabated

Thieves have been stealing valuable trees from Lathitila Reserve Forest in Juri upazila of Moulvibazar, right under the nose of the forest officials.

At least 15 large teak trees, valued at several lakhs of taka, were felled and stolen from the forest over the past few months, but no decisive step has been taken to stop it.

Visiting Kamalchhara, Galachipa, and Daser Tila areas of the forest recently, this correspondent saw around 30 more trees of different species have been deliberately marked for felling soon.

The miscreants mark each tree with a ring around its root before cutting the trunk to let it die, and remove it from the spot soon afterwards.

The area from where the trees are being stolen is only a few minutes away from the office of Mazharul Islam, beat officer of the forest.

Contacted, he could not provide any explanation why there has not been any steps taken to this end.

"It is deeply concerning to witness the lack of decisive action from the forest department in addressing this urgent issue. We urge the authorities to prioritise the protection of our forests and take immediate steps to apprehend those responsible," said Kamrul Hasan Noman, a member of Patharia Wildlife Conservation Team.

Juri Range officer Nazmul Hussain said he visited the spot and legal action is being taken regarding the stealing of trees from the forest.