DADU, June 10: The shortage of water and apathy of the department concerned have affected forests along eastern and western banks of the Indus River.

According to a survey conducted by this correspondent, land in Kutcho area has dried up and trees are dying rapidly in the forests along the banks of the Indus River.

The forests of Dadu district in Katcho area, including Budho Deero, Kachho Magsi, Kamal Dero, Katcho Sita, Sona Bindi, Soee, K.T. Jatoi, K.T. Khera, Amri, Abad, Kandi Baghbhan, are the worst affected.

Thousands of acres of forest land in the district, from Kotri to Radhan along the River Indus, is illegally occupied by influential landlords with the connivance of forest officials. The influential landlords are cultivating crops and are cutting trees illegally on the forest land since years.

When contacted, district forest officer Javed Ahmed Mehar, admitting that influential landlords had occupied hundreds of acres of forest land, said he had issued notices to 55 landlords in various parts of the district.

He said the department had warned them that if they did not vacate the possession of the forest land, they would be arrested.

He said he had also informed Dadu District Nazim about the situation.

Meanwhile, divisional forest officer Abdul Sattar Khatri said 18,000 acres of forest land was occupied by influential persons illegally in various times.

He said the department had taken action against the influential persons who had occupied the state land and were cutting trees illegally in Dadu district.

Many FIRs were registered against them at different police stations of the district and about 50,000 acres were vacated from the possession of the influential persons.

ACCIDENT: Eight-year-old Taimoor Ali died after being hit by a Hyderabad-bound passenger bus on Hyderabad-Jamshoro road near RBB colony, Jamshoro, when he was crossing the road along with his father on Monday. The bus driver escaped along with the bus.