1200 roadside trees being felled

Influential people are felling a large number of eucalyptus trees along a two-kilometre road of Taluk Kanupur union in the district's Gobindaganj upazila without any tender or order from the competent authorities.

Local people planted over 1200 eucalyptus saplings along the road from Basudevpur Bazar to Teliyan village under social forestation programme 15 years ago.

Some local influential people in collaboration with the chairman of Taluk Kanupur Union Parishad (UP) sold out the now matured trees to local timber traders without any prior permission of the authorities concerned and the buyers have started felling the trees and shifting those to safe places, locals said.

Shaheen Mia, a local timber trader, said they purchased the trees after settling the matter with UP Chairman Atiqur Rahman Atik and Jaharul Islam Sabuj, president of social forestation programme.

Sabuj said they have sold out 442 trees for Tk 26 lakh through a 'spot tender'.

Locals, however, said all of the 1200 roadside trees were sold without any tender.

Contacted over cell phone, UP Chairman Atiqur Rahman Atik said he would talk to journalists on that matter later.

Asked about the matter, Mizanur Rahman, upazila forest officer of Gobindaganj, said he is not aware about the felling of roadside trees.

Ramkrishna Barman, upazila nirbahi officer of Gobindaganj, said he asked the UP chairman and the president of social forestation programme to submit all the documents related to selling of roadside trees but they only submitted a resolution of the committee.

Action will be taken, if any discrepancy is found, he said.