Smugglers kill two forest staff

• Some forest personnel yet to return to safety
• Around 200 red sanders smugglers attack patrolling party
• Police launch massive combing operations
• CM directs head of forest staff to conduct probe
• Ill-equipped forest staff becoming an easy target

Tirupati: In a most shocking incident, two forest officials were done to death by red sanders smugglers in Peddabandlachenu forest area, in the deep forest of Seshchalam hill ranges, 17 km from Tirumala, on Sunday.

The two officials who are merclessly killed by the smugglers are identified as deputy forest ranger Sridhar and assistant beat officer David Kumar.

Expressing shock over the deaths, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy directed officials to conduct an inquiry into the incident. Condoling the death of the two personnel, he directed the officials to provide best medical treatment to those injured in the incident. He directed the principal conservator of forests to rush to the spot and submit a report after inquiring into the incident, it said.

The gory incident occurred between 9 am and 9.30 am when a group of 8 forest personnel including the two dead, went into the forest area located beyond Tumbhuratheeratham, following an alert from the first batch numbering six which left in the early hours (around 5 in the morning) on patrolling the beat. The eight-member group which was going to Peddabandlachenu forest area to trace the smugglers, in fact apprehended two wood cutters (smugglers), but were taken aback when they saw about a hundred smugglers pouring out from the deep woods from all directions and surrounding them.

What followed next was a brutal attack by the large group of smugglers indiscriminately with stones hitting the 8 forest personnel who were outnumbered. They dragged Sridhar who collapsed bleeding profusely in the stone attack. They axed him to death, while David Kumar too was killed on the spot by the raining of stones.

Two others, Raju and Ramana, were also grievously injured in the stone attack. The injured were first treated in Aswini hospital, Tirumala, before being shifted to Tirupati, down the hills, for better treatment. Some of the personnel in the first batch are still to reach safety and are believed to be somewhere in the forest. A visibly upset forest beat officer Ramlal Naik, who escaped unhurt from the attackers, said that the smugglers number was very high, might be around 200, adding they might be still lurking in the deep woods.

The police, after receiving information, started combing the forest area from Parvatimandapam. The task force has also joined the combing operations.

The death of two forest personnel spread like wildfire in the town, shocking every one. The anxious family members, relatives and friends reached the forest offices at Tirumala and at Tirupati to know the fate of their men.

They lamented that the unarmed field staff, of late, have become lame duck for the dare devil smugglers who are well-equipped. Top officials could not be contacted.