Tree plunderers have long been cutting down valuable wood-oil trees, locally known as Garjan, from different reserve forests of the district.
The concerned forest department has not been paying proper heed to prevent the misdeed. Consequently, the century-old trees, worth hundreds of crores, are facing extinction.
Interestingly, Cox’s Bazar forest department also has no census on Garjan trees, which makes it difficult to figure out the seriousness of the pillage.
Earlier, the Garjan forests situated in Dariar Dighi and Purba Desuar of Ramu upazila have already disappeared because of the actions of the miscreants.
Sources at Cox’s Bazar forest department said there are more than 2lakh Garjan trees in different areas of the district. Even Chakaria upazila has one lakh trees.
In 1931 and 1935, Khutakhali and Medakaschapia Garjan forests, located on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway, were declared reserve forests by the then British government. Later, the Bangladesh government declared the area as a national park, prohibiting all types of tree-felling there.
It was alleged that the tree plunders have been looting the trees at nights with the help of some corrupt forest officials as it is considered very good material to make boats and it has high demand from boat owners.
Shahed-e Alam, divisional forest official of Cox’s Bazar (North) Forest Department, said they have been taking action against some unscrupulous people who are carrying out such misdeeds.
“This is quite impossible for us to check the tree-felling unless locals as well as police come forward to help us.”
Denying the allegation, Abdul Awal Sarker, divisional forest official of Cox’s Bazar (South) Forest Department, said: “We have no census on Garjan, but I can assume that over one lakh such trees may be under Cox’s Bazar south forest department.”