BENGALURU: Illegal chopping and theft of sandalwood trees continues unabated in the forests and farmlands of Karnataka. Recently, one person was held after he was caught chopping sandalwood logs in a reserve forest of Sirsi.
Erappa alias Nagappa Naik (52) was caught red-handed with 40 kg of wood by the Siddapura forest patrolling staff. RFO Shivanand S Ningani told TNIE the that offender had been booked under various sections of the Karnataka Forest Act, 1963 and 1969.
The RFO said, “This is a non-bailable offence and he has been remanded to judicial custody for 15 days by Siddapura JMFC court. This offender from Sagar taluk had somehow entered Kanagodu reserve forest area and Survey No. 109 and chopped the trees and already cut them into logs and sticks.
This reserve forest has a healthy growth of sandalwood trees in the Sirsi division.” It is not just forests but even private lands where farmers grow sandalwood are eyed by thieves and smugglers. Recently, Lokeshwara, a farmer, lost his crop when thieves chopped 150 sandalwood trees growing in his land at Suttukote village in Shivamogga taluk.
With the state forest department providing saplings to grow this fragrant wood, this farmer had taken 6,000 saplings from the department and cultivated in 20 acres of his farmland. However, protection of the trees being the farmer’s responsibility, he has lost his precious crop.
Therefore, now many farmers feel the need for insurance cover for their sandalwood trees. The wood of the sandalwood tree is perhaps the most prizedfor its fragrant heartwood sold at private auctions in the price range of Rs 16,000-18,000 to Rs 65,000 per kg. However, in government auctions, it is Rs 7,000-8,000 per kg.