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Illegal timber trade wiping out forests

Tribals and settlers in CHT never had 'dispute' over 'one thing'

By Shehab Ahmed back from Khagrachhari
There have been occasional troubles between the tribesmen and the settlers in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, but they never have a dispute on one issue — illegal extraction of logs and firewood from the forests and trading on those.
Under the cover of a special permit to extract firewood and logs from privately owned woods, a massive trade on tim-
ber is going on. gradually wiping out the classified and nonclassified forests.
All along the road from Tablachhari to Panchhari, logs are stockpiled, neatly sawed off and sized.
Trucks carry the timber to the traders and saw mills.
Just down the Bailey bridge over the Chengi river at Pancn-han. a huge pile of logs is seen
at a saw mill. No mill was seen there two years ago.
At Panchhari Bazaar, several saw mills and furniture shops are busy.
Every day before sun set. empty trucks rush down Khagrachhari road to Panchhari Bazaar and return loaded with timbers. Some proceed straight to Chittagong and others to Dhaka without any hindrance.
All along the 25 km of the Khagrachhari-Panchhari road, there are a number of saw mills with bamboo fencing on the • roadside.
Just at the entrance of Khagrachhari Bazaar, logs, fire wood and bamboo are on sale. New furniture shops also dot the Bazaar, besides many more in and around Chengi bridge and Chengi square.
Every morning, tribesmen and settlers carrying logs and firewood on their back arrive at the Bazaar and traders usually buy those paying nominal prices to the poor people who walk miles with the loads.
The logs, specially of ■ teak and rain trees, are in high demand in the country.
The trucks face little hindrance as they have copies of the special pennit given by a committee consisting of officials and public representatives. authorising sale of timber from private wood lots.
Under the cover of the permit. thousands of cubic feet of timber are finding their way to different parts of the country.
Even people carry the timber on roofs ol public buses.
The situation is getting out of control." admitted a local official preferring anonymity
It is a Mafia style operation continuing for the benefit of a section of people of various cat-egories — forest department staff, public representatives, law keepers and security personnel.” he said.
Officials concerned in Dhaka also admitted that the situation is alarming, but expressed their Inability to Improve It In the near future.
But for how long? asked some social workers. NGO ac tlvists and environmentalists.