Anantapur: Officials accelerate steps to prevent red sanders smuggling

Anantapur: Hundreds of vehicles passing between Chennai and Bengaluru travel through Anantapur district. The Forest Rangers are keeping a tab on red sanders smugglers who pass through the district smuggling red sanders logs. Recently the forest personnel have increased conduct of awareness programmes among the people, raids to break nexus between smugglers in districts and are also conducting raids on vehicles and on warehouses etc at the field level.

In the recent raids red sanders logs and vehicles were also seized.

The forest personnel stepped up vigilance on villages bordering Kadapa and Kurnool and made inquiries about the whereabouts and activities of those listed as smugglers. It is aimed that no new smugglers should come into the region. Vigilance was stepped up in 270 fringe villages and awareness on the consequences of the Forest Smuggling Act on one hand and taking stringent action on the smugglers as per the Act.

The intelligence and informer network is also strengthened by awarding rewards to the informers on smugglers movements. Coordination among departments of Forest, Police and Revenue personnel has been increased by conducting Naka Bandi and checking all vehicles on the national high ways, say forest rangers operating in the dense forests. The results have boosted the morale of the field personnel and officers, say forest rangers.