India News | 3 Arrested for Illegal Felling of Forests in UP's Balrampur

Balrampur (UP), Feb 7 (PTI) Three people, including a forest ranger, have been arrested for their involvement in illegal felling of forests in Balrampur district, an official said on Friday.

The Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) recovered a significant quantity of timber near the Siria drain in Tulsipur on January 28, said Superintendent of Police (SP) Vikas Kumar, adding the timber was loaded onto a pickup truck.

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A case was subsequently registered at the Tulsipur Police Station by a forest guard named Vidyasagar.

"The investigation revealed an organized gang involved in the illegal logging. The gang was found to be cutting down valuable trees, transporting them in small vehicles and then consolidating the timber before distributing it across the country," said the officer.

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Further investigation identified forest ranger Rakesh Pathak as a member of the gang.

"Pathak along with two other individuals, Anup Shukla and Azad Chauhan, were arrested. Three mobile phones used in the illegal logging operation were recovered from their possession," said the SP.

The mastermind behind the operation is currently at large and efforts are underway to apprehend him, he added.

Sohelwa forest area, Divisional Forest Officer, Dr Sam Maran M, said that a letter requesting the suspension of the ranger was sent to the higher authorities two days prior to the arrests.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)