Lax checkposts in Nellore allow smuggling

Nellore: Name-sake checkposts in the district that practically fail to keep an eye on illegal transportation of red sanders from Seshachalam forests are emboldening smugglers to carry out their nefarious activity on the routes in the district as there would be no obstruction or hassle in transporting the precious wood to other parts of the state.

Even though sanders logs are cut in the forests of Kadapa and Chittoor districts, they are only being transported via Nellore because of convenient system where no significant checks are carried out at important junctions. The activity is not confining to areas close to forest but also distant places like Kavali, Kodavaluru, and other places near the national highway.

Even forest officials admit that there is no adequate check at Nellorepalem, Krishnapuram checkposts, Kaluvoya-Somasila road, and also between Venkatagiri and Tirupati. The dysfunctional system at many places has been the major factor aiding continuous smuggling of sanders via Nellore to various destinations in the state and other states.

Of the 2.63 lakh hectare forest areas in the district, 1.75 lakh hectare are located in the mandals of the district alone. Chittoor, Kadapa and Nellore are the only districts where red sanders wood is available and smugglers from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and other parts of the country set up bases in important places for monitoring the illegal activities day-to-day.

International/national smugglers depute their henchmen to monitor the activities of cutting, storing and shifting to safe places before export of the wood, to warehouses located across the country. Interestingly, most of the smugglers prefer Nellore district since there would not be much problems with checkposts. The only risk they face is anonymous callers who inform about illegal transportation due to internal rivalries.

Though there are more than 10 checkposts being operated by the forest department, Nellorepalem and Krishnapuram posts are located on the Mumbai national highway with bypassing facility giving huge scope for avoiding checks.

Further, there are checkposts in Rapur and Venkatagiri ranges. But they are ill-equipped check smuggling operations. Kavali is the main place where the stocks would be temporarily stored and shifted to the destinations on the NH-16.

The smugglers use internal roads like Peddapavani-Kavali, Bitragunta for the transportation. Some trucks from Udayagiri and Seetharamapuram areas cross major villages in Prakasam district and finally reach Kavali via RC Palem to enter the national highway. Staff members at some checkposts cannot observe movement of vehicles due to distance between the two roads and hence there has been no proper check.

“We organise checks on the important routes in the district even during nights to check any illegal transportation of red sanders. But, sometimes they escape due to advanced information from errant employees of line departments. We are taking stringent measures to curb the practice,” said a senior police official.