Upper half of 6,000 trees cut for electric line

The Rural Electrification Board (REB) cut down the upper half of over 6,000 trees under the social forestation project on 17-km-long area of Patuakhali-Betagi road to run a high voltage power line from Patuakhali district town to Betagi upazila headquarters in Barguna district.

Besides, 58 trees under the same project were cut at Puran Mohipur village under Kalapara upazila in Patuakhali.

On March 23, this correspondent found some workers of Patuakhali REB were cutting upper portion of trees at Pairakunjo in Patuakhali Sadar upazila on Patuakhali-Betagi road.

"These trees are being cut down as they fall under the newly built 19-km-long power distribution line that would be opened by this month," said Adbullah AL Noman, who was supervising the tree cutting in the area.

Atah Hossain, Patuakhali Sadar range forest officer, said, "We planted about 17,000 trees on both sides of the 19 km road under the social forestation project from 1996 to 2006. One-third of the trees are being cut down for setting the electric line."

As per the agreement, local beneficiaries who worked for planting and maintenance of the trees would get 55 percent of the total value of the trees when it would be sold after maturity while the rest is meant for the authorities concerned, he said.

Now local beneficiaries would be deprived of proper benefit as huge numbers of trees are being cut down before maturity.

Atahar Sikder, a beneficiary of Pairakunjo area under Patuakhali Sadar upazla, said, "I was supposed to get several lakh taka by selling these trees after maturity but now they are cutting down the trees before their full maturity. It causes us loss."

Ajit Kumer Rudro, divisional forest officer (DFO) in Patuakhali, said according to the approval from the higher authority we cut down the upper portion of the trees under the power line.

Md Hafej Ahmed, general manager of Patuakhali REB, said, "Following permission from the forest department these trees are being cut down to run the power line by this month. There was no alternative as we considered many things like maintenance of the line, carrying materials, reducing life risk and establishment cost."

Meanwhile, REB recently cut down 58 trees that were planted in 2011-12 fiscal year at Mohipur in Kalapara upazila to build a 200-yard-long electric line to supply power to a mobile tower.

The act caused grievance among the local beneficiaries of the project.

A bit officer of the forest department said the trees were cut down without permission from them and he has already informed the high authority of the matter.