Gujarat: 75 wildlife and forest offences registered in Gir East, fines exceed Rs 13 lakh

Gandhinagar, Aug 19 (IANS) The Gir East Forest Division has registered 75 offences linked to wildlife protection and forest violations and recovered more than Rs 13.30 lakh in fines over the past four months, as the Gujarat Forest Department steps up action against unauthorised entry, hunting, illegal timber transport and activities that could disturb wildlife.

The action was taken on the instructions of state Forest and Environment Minister Arjun Modhwadia, with the department focusing on the protection of Asiatic lions and forest resources in the Gir landscape.

Of the 75 cases, 38 were registered against people who entered the sanctuary area without authorisation.

Fines totalling around Rs 7,76,400 were imposed in these cases, according to the Forest Department.

Eight of the cases involved the hunting of wild animals.

Court proceedings are underway in four of these cases, while punitive action has been completed in the remaining four.

The department has recovered Rs 2,20,000 in fines in those cases.

The division also registered 16 offences against people allegedly transporting timber without a valid permit or transit pass.

A fine of Rs 3,03,000 was recovered in these cases.

A further 17 offences were registered for activities including dumping plastic waste and illegally grazing livestock in reserved grassland, with Rs 32,500 recovered in fines.

The department said the action was intended to maintain the environmental cleanliness of the sanctuary and protect its forest resources.

The Forest Department has urged people to report any incidents involving harassment of wild animals, illegal hunting, unauthorised entry into restricted forest areas or timber theft to the nearest forest office or forest staff.

The Office of the Gir-East Deputy Conservator of Forests in Amreli has also asked citizens to report social media content showing the harassment of lions or other wildlife, illegal lion shows or sightings, entry into prohibited areas or hunting.

The department said details of any such reels, photographs or videos should be shared with it so that appropriate action can be taken.

The latest enforcement figures come amid continued efforts by the department to prevent unauthorised activities in and around Gir.

In July, forest officials had detained eight people in connection with alleged harassment of Asiatic lions and unauthorised entry into restricted forest areas after videos of the activities circulated on social media.

The Forest Department has reiterated that citizens should not promote or circulate content depicting wildlife harassment or illegal activity and should instead alert forest officials so that violations can be investigated and dealt with under the applicable law.

–IANS

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