JANAKPURDHAM: An official report has revealed that over 5,692 hectares of forestland in Madhes Province have been encroached upon.
The report, released by the Madhes Province government, attributes this rampant encroachment to shortcomings and negligence by forest employees and related security agencies.
There are allegations that forest employees have prioritized areas offering more personal benefits, exacerbating the encroachment issue.
According to the Province’s Ministry of Forests, Madhes has approximately 202,200 hectares of forestland, of which 5,592 hectares have been encroached due to inadequate conservation efforts.
The report details encroachment figures across various districts: Saptari (7.25 hectares), Siraha (993.14 hectares), Dhanusha (872 hectares), Mahottari (329.80 hectares), Sarlahi (164.78 hectares), Rautahat (3,190.54 hectares), Bara (0.34 hectares), and Parsa (134.32 hectares).
Forests cover 22.8 percent of Madhes Province’s total area, with 504 community forest areas spanning 71,369 hectares managed as community forests.
Additionally, 40,912.33 hectares are managed as shared forests. Out of 136 local administrative units in the province, 89 lack forestland, with about 80 percent of these units located in Madhes.
Studies indicate encroachments on national, community, shared, and protected forests across various regions including the Terai and inner Madhes districts.
Jagannath Prasad Jaiswal, Chief of the Directorate of Forests in Madhes Province, emphasized that planned efforts to address forest encroachments are underway and called for political cooperation and commitment to achieve the set goals.
Experts have noted that despite efforts to promote forestation, measures to combat illegal deforestation, wood smuggling, forest fires, and poaching have been inadequately enforced.
In response, Madhes Province Chief Minister Satish Kumar Singh has directed district forest office chiefs to take action against forestland encroachment.
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