The Sunday newspapers and regional TV news channels featured many women achievers honouring them for their outstanding contributions in respective fields, in connection with the International Women’s Day celebrations all over the State. None of them, however, remembered the braveheart forester Chole Anitha, who had braved a brutal physical attack in line of duty in June last year in Kagaznagar of Kumram Bheem Asifabad district.
“More than the media, it is the Forest Department and the women’s organisations which ought to be blamed for the perceived ‘miss’,” opined a forester. “Notwithstanding the K.V.S. Babu IFS Memorial Gold Medal that she was awarded on Independence Day last year, the department should have remembered her as a woman officer for her outstanding contribution in protection of forest land,” he added.
It may be recalled that on June 30, 2019, Ms. Anitha, then Kagaznagar Forest Range Officer, and her team were attacked by villagers of Kotha Sarasala where she had been to take up plantation in a 20 hectare piece of forest land. The attack was allegedly led by Koneru Krishna, a local ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi party leader and brother of Sirpur MLA Koneru Konappa. Ironically Mr. Krishna was made vice chairman of Asifabad Zilla Parishad.
Rewards
Also ironical, according to conservationists, was the appointment of the MLA as a member of the Telangana State Board for Wildlife which was reconstituted in December.
In contrast, the government transferred out Ms. Anitha and then Kagaznagar Forest Divisional Officer M. Raja Ramana Reddy.
“Honouring the FRO for her bravery would not only have been appropriate on the occasion but it would have sent a clear message that honesty in work is noted by the government. It will affirm that forest service is not a thankless job,” observed another field level forest officer.