NAWABSHAH, Oct 14: Villagers of Chhaten Shah and Nazar Shah, Sakrand taluka, held a demonstration outside the District Nazim office here on Thursday to protest against illegal tree felling and encroachments in the Nasiri Forest.

Led by Ahmed Shah and Karam Ali Shah, the protesters claimed that influential landowners had encroached upon 50 per cent of the forest, and added that 7,000 acres of forest land had been encroached upon, including Mari, Jalbani, A. P. Jurio, Sukhpur, Lakhat, Pai and Pirchi.

They alleged that their cattle, as well as wildlife, had been affected adversely, and was dying, because of the rapid tree cutting in connivance with the forest department and police.

They said that people from Dadu district had migrated to their area and the bordering forests, and were making a nuisance of themselves by insisting that the Nasiri forest was actually the Amri forest of Dadu, and, therefore, their area.

The protesters met District Nazim Faryal Talpur, who took serious notice of the problem and formed a six-member committee, headed by DFO Zulfiqar Memon, to measure the boundaries of the Nasiri Belo, and to take strict action against illegal woodcutting and encroachments. The committee includes inhabitants of the affected area.

Later, talking to journalists, the DFO rejected allegations that the department was involved in encroachment and woodcutting, and said that they had no arms and police cooperation was nil, but despite that several operations were carried out against trespassers and 12 FIRs were lodged.

Confirming that about 7,000 acres of forest land had been encroached upon, he claimed that the department, in coordination with the local people, was working to stop the illegal practices.

WATER SHORTAGE: MPA Ghulam Qadir Chandio has urged the irrigation department to operate all closed tube wells of the SCARP to meet the shortage of water and achieve possible reduction in agricultural taxes.