A Reserve Forest free for thieves!

Thirteen employees at the centre get salary without any work. The government spends Tk 60,000 a months on this count.

The vast forest area around the centre also gives a barren look as big timber trees have been stolen by thieves.

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About 2.5 lakh trees worth over Tk 15 crore were taken from its area since 1990, according to Abdul Latif, Ranger of Modhupur Forest Range.

But officials of the centre and the Modhupur Forest Range blame each other for the pilferage.

The centre is about four kilometres from the Modhupur upazila in Tangail, along the Mymensingh-Tangail road.

The research complex was set up in 1968 with 425 acres of land around and an office building, research building and residences for employees were built subsequently.

In 1997, the forest department took away 293 acres of land, leaving 132 acres under it for research on local and foreign trees. Many varieties of foreign trees including Ucaliptas and Minjium were raised along with local ones. But there is none now.

The centre is in a poor state with virtually no work only because of lack of a research officer. Research Officer Mohammad Ahiul Islam was transferred to Chittagong in 1997. The post is still vacant.

Ranger Subrata Kumar Das, who is in-charge at the centre, told this correspondent that there is no work there due to absence of a research officer. The government has also stopped funds.

He claimed that taking advantage of lack of work, thieves, in collusion with a section of employees of Chararjani forest bit and Modhupur forest range office have taken away most of the local and foreign trees from its area. The area was full of trees till 1997, he claimed.

Deputy Ranger Manindra Nath Das said he is at the centre since 1980 and had raised numerous timber trees of local and foreign varieties.

Abul Kashem, Forester at the centre, also blamed the forest department men for the pilferage. The centre has no security force to protect trees from armed thieves, he said.

To a question, Subrata said they gave several representations to the Ministry of Forest and Environment to depute a research officer. The ministry gave only assurance.

Ranger Abdul Latif claimed that till 1990, there were about 2,50,000 foreign and local varieties of big timber trees worth about Tk. 15 crore in the reserve forest area of the research centre. Thieves stole those in connivance with employees of the research centre.

"Had they not been involved in the pilferage, they should have filed case or General Diary(GD) with police. But they did not file any case or GD in ten years," he said.

Abdur Rahaman, Bit Officer of Charaljani Bit, alleged that most of the pilferage took place during the period when Research Officer Ahiul Islam at the centre.