Forest officer suspended after encroachment incident

Kolar

Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Forest Force) Meenakshi Negi has suspended Srinivaspur Zone Forest Officer K.N. Ravikirti for dereliction of duty in connection with forest encroachment and damage to plantation.

The suspension order states that Ravikirti failed to report developments in his zone to higher officials and took no legal steps to stop the encroachers. The Conservator of Forests (Bangalore Circle) submitted a report to Meenakshi Negi supporting this claim.

A total of 4,060 acres in the Srinivaspur zone was declared as state forest in 1910 and is now a reserved forest under Section 23 of the Karnataka Forest Areas Act, 1963. In 2023, illegal encroachments were cleared from this forest area. About 12 writ petitions were filed against the clearance operation and are still pending in the High Court.

In one such case (Writ Petition No. 20247/2023), 6 acres illegally occupied by K.M. Nagaraju were cleared and reforested under the KFDA scheme. A cattle-proof trench was built, and around ₹3.25 crore was spent on the effort.

However, on April 5, Nagaraju and others, claiming an interim court order, used tractors to re-enter the land and destroyed around 100 acres of plantation. The Kolar DCF reported the incident to the higher-ups over the phone.

Upon examining the records, it was found that Ravikirti had failed in his responsibilities under the Karnataka Forest Code 1976 and violated civil service rules. Considering the seriousness of the issue, disciplinary action has been initiated, and he has been suspended pending inquiry.

Meanwhile, on the same day, forest officials and farmers clashed in Kethaganahalli when farmers attempted to reclaim cleared land. Police intervened to control the situation.