HYDERABAD, April 6: District Nazim Kanwar Naveed Jamil has constituted a task force for conserving and promoting forestry and preventing illegal cutting of wood and hunting of precious species of wildlife in the district.

The eight-member task force, headed by the EDO, revenue, Abdul Sattar Jatoo, was formed at a meeting held at the nazim’s secretariat.

Expressing concern over deforestation due to apathy of officers concerned who were more interested in leasing out the forest land, Mr Jamil said the practice had made wildlife unsafe because it had deprived them of a natural environment.

He said the district government would launch a programme under joint resources of provincial and district police, forest and wildlife departments for conservation and promotion of forestation with a view to providing a natural environment to wildlife and protecting forests.

He directed task force members to visit forest areas in the district and identify blank land for forestation.

The nazim said that under a joint strategy, the district government would make 100,000 saplings available for plantation on blank lands of forests during this year and a target of providing 200,000 saplings had been set for the next year.

Referring to a report submitted by the district officer, forest, about leasing out of 1,054 acres of 13,923 acres of forest land in the district, he said the land was meant for forestation by the authority concerned and its leasing to private persons had encouraged the land mafia for further deforestation in the district.

He said that henceforth, no one would be allowed to cut forest trees and hunt animals in the district.

Mr Jamil directed the management of wildlife and the district police to evolve a foolproof strategy so that no one could hunt precious species of wildlife.

He stressed the need for coordination among departments concerned for establishing an effective intelligence network in the district to check deforestation and hunting of precious species.

He asked the task force to submit its progress report in a week.