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COIMBATORE: Forest Department officials in the Anaimalai Tiger Reserve (ATR) arrested five people on Friday for attempting to smuggle sandalwoods from a reserve forest area in Pollachi forest range. The officials have seized 72 kg of sandalwood and a car from them.
ATR deputy field director MG Ganesan and forest range officer A Kasilingam got a tip-off about the strangers’ movements in the adjacent area of the reserve forest at Sarkarpathi in Pollachi forest range on Friday. Immediately, a team of forest department officials rushed to the spot and surrounded the five strangers and secured them for interrogation. The officials found 39 pieces of sandalwood logs weighing about 72 kg in a car. They attempted to smuggle the sandalwood to Kerala from ATR.
The officials arrested N Venkatesh, 40, from Arthanaripalayam in Pollachi, M Mohammed Basheer, 47, of Thenkara village in Palakkad district, T Manikandan, 23, T Chakkaravarthy, 26 and T Anbalagan, 21, all hailed from Jamunamarathur in Thiruvannamalai district. Venkatesh used to identify the locality of sandalwoods in the reserve forest and patta land and Mohammed Basheer was a car driver. The other three youths were woodcutters.
Preliminary inquiries revealed that Manikandan had gone to Andhra Pradesh to cut the red sanders with a group of people. He was not caught by the Andhra Pradesh forest department officials. He took two others from his village in Thiruvannamalai to ATR, a few days ago and axed a sandalwood tree inside the reserve forest at Ulandhi forest range and another tree inside the reserve forest near Sarkarpathi in Pollachi forest range. They had taken away the trunk of the trees and made them into 39 pieces weighing 72 kg each. When the five people were loading the sandalwood into the car, they were caught red handed.
“They were planning to sell one kg of sandalwood for Rs 1,700 to K P Abdul Saleem, 53 of Kozhinjampara in Palakkad district. Abdul Saleem would sell one kg of sandalwood to others for more than Rs 2,000. He was caught red handed while attempting to smuggle sandalwood in Pollachi in 2018 and he was fined Rs 1 lakh. Later, he was let off. Now, he is using some people to smuggle the sandalwood,” said an official.
The officials have registered a case against the arrested five people and Abdul Saleem under sections 21 (d) (e) (f) of the Tamil Nadu Forest Act and section 29 of Protection of Wildlife Act.
“We are seeking help from the Kerala state forest department to secure Abdul Saleem who is absconding now,” said the official.
ATR deputy field director MG Ganesan and forest range officer A Kasilingam got a tip-off about the strangers’ movements in the adjacent area of the reserve forest at Sarkarpathi in Pollachi forest range on Friday. Immediately, a team of forest department officials rushed to the spot and surrounded the five strangers and secured them for interrogation. The officials found 39 pieces of sandalwood logs weighing about 72 kg in a car. They attempted to smuggle the sandalwood to Kerala from ATR.
The officials arrested N Venkatesh, 40, from Arthanaripalayam in Pollachi, M Mohammed Basheer, 47, of Thenkara village in Palakkad district, T Manikandan, 23, T Chakkaravarthy, 26 and T Anbalagan, 21, all hailed from Jamunamarathur in Thiruvannamalai district. Venkatesh used to identify the locality of sandalwoods in the reserve forest and patta land and Mohammed Basheer was a car driver. The other three youths were woodcutters.
Preliminary inquiries revealed that Manikandan had gone to Andhra Pradesh to cut the red sanders with a group of people. He was not caught by the Andhra Pradesh forest department officials. He took two others from his village in Thiruvannamalai to ATR, a few days ago and axed a sandalwood tree inside the reserve forest at Ulandhi forest range and another tree inside the reserve forest near Sarkarpathi in Pollachi forest range. They had taken away the trunk of the trees and made them into 39 pieces weighing 72 kg each. When the five people were loading the sandalwood into the car, they were caught red handed.
“They were planning to sell one kg of sandalwood for Rs 1,700 to K P Abdul Saleem, 53 of Kozhinjampara in Palakkad district. Abdul Saleem would sell one kg of sandalwood to others for more than Rs 2,000. He was caught red handed while attempting to smuggle sandalwood in Pollachi in 2018 and he was fined Rs 1 lakh. Later, he was let off. Now, he is using some people to smuggle the sandalwood,” said an official.
The officials have registered a case against the arrested five people and Abdul Saleem under sections 21 (d) (e) (f) of the Tamil Nadu Forest Act and section 29 of Protection of Wildlife Act.
“We are seeking help from the Kerala state forest department to secure Abdul Saleem who is absconding now,” said the official.
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