Gujarat forest officer's red flag over dam excavation

The Gujarat government's water conservation drive in Devbhoomi Dwarka has put two officials at loggerheads with each other. A forest officer had protested the excavation at Gulab Sagar Dam located in Barda sanctuary, fearing disturbance to abundant and rare species of wildlife including lions. However, the work started recently with the backing of the district collector, with hundreds of vehicles plying in the sanctuary. The forest official was reportedly on leave when the work was started.

Talking to DNA on the issue, the Deputy Conservator of Forests (Porbandar) HN Bhavsar, said, "I had expressed my fears that movement of vehicles and excavation can disturb the wild life including lions in the breeding center. Moreover, the Devbhoomi Dwarka district administration insisted that the soil extracted through excavation should be given to local people and that would again increase movement of vehicles and people in the sanctuary. I cited several articles under the Indian Forest Act but the collector was persistent on the civil work. I went on leave May 23 onwards and then I do not know what happened.

"Besides lions, there are leopards, civets, hyenas, rare birds and many other animals in this sanctuary. The district administration should have sent a proposal for the work as per rules but instead, they wrote me a letter and asked me to facilitate the excavation. I protested and did not let it happen while I was on duty. My greater fear is that this activity would open the gates of the forest area to illegal mining of lime stone which is available in abundance in the area," Bhavsar added.

Bhavsar had reportedly intimated his seniors up to the level of principle chief conservator of forests in Gandhinagar while Bhanvad Range Forest Officer BM Ambaliya wrote to local officers.