The anti-poaching flying squad of Tirupati Wildlife Division in the early hours of Monday seized about one tonne of red sander logs, valued at over Rs. 2 crore, two vehicles and nabbed some unspecified number of smugglers at Devarakonda forest location of Chamala range of Seshachalam hills.
DFO (Flying Squad) Pawan Kumar told The Hindu that while the squad members were on patrol at the vulnerable beat, they came across the SUVs at the forest location, a group of men were engaged in loading the red sander logs into the vehicles.
On spotting the raid party, several woodcutters escaped into the forests under cover of darkness, but those in the vehicles were nabbed. “We have detained some persons and further investigations are needed,” the official said. However, there is a version that a Tamil Nadu-based smuggler Vasanth was caught in the raid.
Meanwhile, the Red sanders Anti-Smuggling task force and the forest task force personnel of Bhakarapet, Chamala and SV National Park ranges have intensified combing operations all along the western side of Seshachalam hills in Chittoor district.
A forest official said that a number of woodcutters had sneaked into the Seshachalam hills and were engaged in shifting the red sander logs from some of their dumps. "The smugglers' activity in the forests bordering Chittoor and Kadapa districts had become a new development in recent weeks," a forest official said.
