BAHAWALPUR: The Abbasnagar police, on the orders of Bahawalpur deputy commissioner, arrested six members of timbre mafia, allegedly involved in pilferage and illegal cutting and sales of trees and wood worth millions of rupees at Lal Suhanra National Park.

DC Zaheer Anwar Jappa old Dawn that the six arrested suspects have been involved in illegal cutting of trees and sale for many years, but neither the police nor the forests department officials concerned had initiated any action against them.

He said the suspects have now been booked in several case for ruthless cutting of trees from the state-owned forest.

Taking notice of complaints, Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb had transferred 11 forest department officials from BS-6 to BS-19 from Bahawalpur to Lahore and made them OSDs, besides ordering the Anti Corruption Establishment (ACE) to initiate a probe into the scandal.

Suspects were wanted in million of rupees scam

The DC said that the suspects were already wanted by police and at least five FIRs -- No 23/2023, 10, 33, 34 and 36/2024 -- had been registered against them, but they were not being arrested.

He said the armed mafia men, in connivance with forest department officials, would blatantly cut precious trees and transport these to different areas through tractor-trolleys, making millions of rupees, without any interference by local police.

The DC said that the six arrested suspects had also been detained under 3-MPO for a period of 30 days, and during this period a thorough inquiry would be conducted into the scam to strengthen evidence required to proceed cases against them.

He said the inquiry against the 11 forest department officials, who were made OSDs on senior minister’s orders, was also going on in Lahore.

The ACE officials told Dawn that the inquiry against the 11 officials would take some time to complete, after which a detailed report would be made public.

Forest department local officials say that the government should post regular staffers in place of those made OSDs to improve working, especially to make the ongoing tree planting campaign in Bahawalpur division successful.

PFUJ RALLY: The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) local unit and Bahawalpur Union of Journalists (BhUJ) on Friday took out a rally here in connection with the International Press Freedom Day.

The rally was led by BhUJ President Majeed Gill and addressed by different other leaders at the local press club.

The participants vowed to continue the struggle for press freedom under the banner of PFUJ.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2024