Forest vigil committees, a joint initiative of the Forest, Police and Tribal Departments aimed at combating terrorist, anti-national and other illegal activities inside forest areas, have started functioning in the district. The first meeting of the committee, chaired by District Collector K G Raju, was held at the Collectorate Conference Hall here the other day.
Wayanad is the first district in the state to constitute vigil committees to crack down on sandalwood smuggling, ganja cultivation, poaching and helping prevent forest fire and collect intelligence on terrorist and anti-national activities. According to the Government Order, the committees would also stress on improving the living standards of tribal people.
Representatives of Vana Samrakshana Samiti (VSS) and various NGOs are members of the panel. The District Collector is the chairman of the district-level committee, while the Revenue Divisional Officer is the head of range-level committee. Forest range officers will chair the station section-level committees. Ten range-level committees, 25 section-level committees and six station-level committees have been formed in the district. Four range-level committees, 12 section-level committees and two station-level committees will operate within the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary limits.
The South Wayanad Forest Division and the North Wayanad Forest Division have three range-level committees each.