Jharkhand Village Puts Signage Restricting Entry Of Forest Officials

Forest dwellers in a village in Jharkhand's Ramgarh district have put up signage asking forest officials to enter the village after getting consent from gram sabha, an official said on Friday. 

The signage was put up at Jitratungri village in the Mandu forest range by two village committees-Van Akhikar Samiti and Van Palan Samiti-in Ramgarh district. The signage displayed various rights given to local tribals in the forest.

A team of forest officials visited the village to carry out a plantation drive on 30 hectares of land in the forest range under Ichakdih panchayat on Thursday. The villagers allegedly took a forester hostage and he was released after a dialogue with senior forest officials, he said.

Ramgarh divisional forest officer (DFO) Nitish Kumar said that the department has demarcated the forest land for a plantation drive on 30 hectares of land.

"Villagers had raised their objection claiming that they have been doing farming on the land. A forester, who had visited the village to carry out plantation on Thursday, had been held by the villagers, which is an unlawful act," he said.

Kumar said that they have not yet taken any legal action against the villagers. "We are trying to resolve the issue amicably. If it is not solved with peaceful negotiations, lawful action might be taken," the DFO said.

Mukhiya of Ichakdih Panchayat, Ramesh Ram said that villagers want officials should take permission from gram sabha before carrying out any plan or project.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)