WARANGAL: Tension prevailed in the Roheer forest area near Chalpaka village in Eturnagaram mandal, Mulugu district, on Monday after tribal residents obstructed forest officials from removing huts allegedly built on forest land.
Hundreds of tribal villagers gathered to prevent the demolition and engaged in heated arguments with the forest officials. Despite the resistance, officials deployed earthmovers and began dismantling the huts.
In retaliation, some villagers attacked the officials with wooden pestles and smeared red chilli powder on Eturnagaram in-charge Forest Range Officer (FRO) Md Apsar and her staff, forcing them to flee.
An earthmover driver, A Ramesh, sustained minor injuries and was taken to the Eturnagaram Community Health Centre for treatment.
Following the attack, forest officials called in the police. Eturnagaram sub-inspector N Raju Kumar and his team reached the spot. In a joint operation conducted by the forest and police departments, the illegal structures were eventually demolished.
Speaking to TNIE, FRO Md Apsar said that around 150 forest personnel, along with earthmovers, had gone to clear encroachments from 26 acres of reserve forest land earmarked for plantation.
‘Man attacked us with sickles’
She alleged that tribal families, led by a man named Niladri, attacked the staff with sickles and pestles and smeared chilli powder on them. “Niladri threw a sickle at the JCB driver, who narrowly escaped with a head injury,” she added.
Calling it a murderous attack, Apsar appealed to the state government and the police to take stringent action against the culprits. Eturnagaram SI N Raju Kumar confirmed that a case has been registered based on the forest department’s complaint and that a probe is underway.