23 forest divisions in Assam do not have approved working plans

 STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Out of 33 forest divisions in Assam, 23 forest divisions do not have approved working plans. This despite the fact that the Supreme Court has clearly specified that all forest divisions must have working plans.

In Assam, there are 23 forest divisions which have been administered without approved working plans since 1972. Only 10 forest divisions have approved working plans. A working plan is a tool for scientific forest management. It is very useful for evaluating the status of forest resource of a division, assessing the impact of past management practices and deciding about suitable management interventions for future. It is also a document that regulates food production, silviculture and tending activity for a specific period. The working plans are prepared for 10 years for each territorial forest division on a scientific basis.

The Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of each forest division must prepare the working plan for that division and get it approved. But there are 23 forest divisions without any working plan. For instance, the Cachar Forest Division has been administered without an approved working plan since 1972; the North Kamrup Forest Division since 1985; the Dhubri Forest Division since 1974; the Sivasagar Forest Division since 1981; and the Dima Hasao Forest Division since 1998.

A working plan lays the roadmap for proper management of forests of a particular forest division. In the absence of a working plan, there are no specified targets, no significant action and consequently, no concrete results. Sources have attributed the poor condition of the Assam Forest Department to the lack of approved working plans for most of the forest divisions.

Interestingly, the Supreme Court of India mandates that forest divisions must be administered with approved working plans. In the apex court’s judgment in WPC 202/1995, Godavaran vs Union of India, it was stated: “............................In case a working plan is not prepared within this time frame, future fellings will remain suspended till the regular working plan is prepared and got approved.”

So the questions arises as to how these 23 forest divisions are being administered without working plans for all these years? The State Forest Department being such a big department, why has it not been able to come up with proper working plans for most of the forest divisions?

Sources said that the Forest Department is being run according to the whims and fancies of a section of Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers. This section of officers allegedly does not even take the minister concerned into confidence before formulating policies. Sources further said that although it is the job of the Forest Department officers to prepare working plans for the forest divisions, the government has engaged a third party to prepare the working plans by spending lakhs of rupees. This, said sources, was totally unnecessary.

Official sources clarified that a third party had been engaged to provide technical assistance while preparing the working plans. This firm has been given a contract of Rs 1.41 crore to provide requisite technical inputs while preparing the working plans.

As per the India State of Forest Report 2021 published by the Forest Survey of India, the growing stock of recorded forest area in Assam has been estimated at 112.68 million cum. Harvestable prescriptions are based on silvicultural formula that are calculated based on growth and yield statistics for tree species of economic importance. Among the approved working plan, harvestable growing stock has been estimated at 38000 cubic metres under the Nagaon South Working Plan.

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