Woodcutters make foray into Seshachalam forest

    Several attempts of the Javvadumalai-based woodcutters to sneak into the Seshachalam forest in the last three weeks have been foiled by sleuths of the Red Sanders Anti Smuggling Task Force (RSASTF), but there are still a huge chunk of them either on the prowl or in the hiding.

As part of the ongoing efforts to rein in the smugglers, the sleuths undertook combing operations in the Rangampeta forest area, when a group of intruders was sighted near Nagapatla East beat of the Seshachalam forest early on Tuesday.

A task force team rounded up a 13-member gang, but the woodcutters scattered and fled under the cover of darkness. The sleuths managed to nab one woodcutter, whose confession led to the arrest of another near Kalletivagu, the stream leading into the Kalyani dam. When the sleuths reached the spot, they found groceries and vegetables brought by the woodcutters in saris and bags distributed by the Tamil Nadu government, indicating that they were indeed Javvadumalai tribesmen. The arrested were identified as Appaswami and Kasi, hailing from Padimalai in Polur taluk of Tiruvannamalai district of Tamil Nadu. This area falls under the now-infamous Javvadumalai forest.

Forest officials said it was the 17th time that the ambush parties had either intercepted smugglers or recovered felled logs from the same area, making it a “hot spot” for red sanders-based criminal activities. Four instances of seizure of red sanders along with vehicles were reported in the last fortnight.