Khandwa: The team reached the forest with 30 JCBs and 600 officers and employees to clear 200 acres of forest land.

Khandva. On Monday morning, the administration started a large-scale campaign to remove the encroachment on forest land in Amakhujri forest in Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh. About 600 officers and employees of Forest, Revenue and Police Department are engaged in action with 30 JCB machines from 7 am. Police forces have been deployed in different parts of the forest during the operation. DFO Rakesh Kumar Damor and Additional SP Mahendra Tarnekar are present on the spot, while Collector Rishabh Gupta and SP Agam Jain also arrived to take stock of the action.

First 13 huts were demolished

The action started with the removal of 13 huts built by the encroachers. While living in these huts, the forest land was cleared and preparations were made for farming. After this, large contours are being dug with JCB machines, so that farming or encroachment cannot happen again in future.

This action has been initiated a day after the violent attack on forest staff on Sunday. Around 400 encroachers, who had come to stop the encroachment, attacked the forest department team with slings and stones. Eight forest workers were injured in the attack with sticks and are undergoing treatment in the district hospital.

First encroachment was removed, then encroachment on 200 acres again

According to the Forest Department, this year, after removing encroachment from about 500 acres of land of Amakhujri forest, large contours (trenches) were dug for protection. Despite this, the encroachers recaptured about 200 acres of forest land and sowed maize. DFO Rakesh Kumar Damor said that after the incident of stone pelting and attack, action has been started by registering an FIR against 9 accused.

30 percent encroachment removed

Additional SP Mahendra Tarnekar said that a joint team of 14 police officers, 200 soldiers and 400 forest personnel is engaged in action. There was some problem due to moisture in the morning, but till now about 30 percent of the encroachment has been removed. At present the situation at the spot is completely under control and there is no protest of any kind.

Forest guard injured due to bike slipping

Here, Khalwa Range forest guard Pankaj Porwal, who was going to participate in the action, got seriously injured when his bike slipped near Gudi. He was referred to Indore from the district hospital due to serious head injury.