SUKKUR: All crops grown on nearly 18,000 acres of forest land by illegal occupants in Ghotki district were destroyed using bulldozers in a sustained anti-encroachment campaign; and trees are now being planted on these lands.

This was stated by Divisional Forest Officer Malik Dino Mallah while speaking to Dawn on Tuesday. He claimed that almost entire forest land now stood retrieved from encroachers within the district’s limits, adding that the remaining 1,910 acres would also be retrieved soon.

He recalled that the Sukkur forest division had, in response to Sindh High Court’s notices, submitted a detailed report regarding illegal occupation of the forest lands.

Mr Mallah said that illegal occupants had been identified and his department had got cases registered against them. It was also mentioned in the report that their illegal act was backed by influential figures of these areas.

The court was urged not to grant bail to suspects in any such cases. He said that the SHC eventually ordered retrieval of these lands with the help of police and other law enforcement agencies. The district administrations concerned were also issued necessary directives in this regard, he added.

An inquiry into the matter was carried out by the National Accounta-bility Bureau (NAB) as well, he said.

According to Mr Mallah, some occupants voluntarily withdrew from around 600 acres in the wake of the court’s decision but many others continued to cultivate the lands under their illegal occupation despite having been warned of action.

In compliance with the court order, the Ghotki district administration launched a ruthless anti-encroachment drive in Mirpur, Sardar Jarwar, Adilpur, Rwanti and other reforest ranges within the precincts of the Guddu Barrage Afforestation Division, Ghotki, to retrieve 17,353 acres of the occupied lands. Now only 1,910 acres were to be cleared, he added.

In reply to a question, the forest official said that crops were destroyed to dispel the impression that the aim of launching this drive was to take away the crops.

Published in Dawn, August 7th, 2024