Indus Valley Times

By Kambu Dhar Kheti

Boudh: Serious allegations of corruption have surfaced regarding tree plantation activities under the CAMPA (Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority) scheme in the Dambarugarh Reserve Forest, located under the Dambarugarh beat of the Sahajpal–Boudh Range’s Bhatara Section. While the government has been allocating substantial funds to restore degraded forest areas, environmentalists and locals claim that much of the money is being siphoned off, with little evidence of real plantation on the ground.

According to sources, 12,000 saplings were reportedly planted across 60 hectares in the 2022–23 financial year. However, due to alleged lack of supervision and upkeep, most of these saplings are said to have been destroyed—grazed by cattle and goats. Despite the Forest, Environment and Climate Change Department sanctioning lakhs of rupees annually for plantation activities in the area, activists argue that the figures shown on official records do not match the reality on the ground. They allege that while paperwork reflects flourishing plantations, the forest itself shows no such growth.

Compounding the problem is rampant timber theft. Residents from nearby villages—including Kankala, Kompra, Dambarugarh, Sahajapal, Maneswar, and Kanakpur—are frequently accused of cutting trees around the clock for fuelwood and household use, further degrading the reserve.

The deterioration is particularly distressing for long-time conservationists. In the early 1990s, Dambarugarh Reserve Forest was a barren, rocky landscape. Local environmentalist and Sangrampur High School teacher Ugrasen Behera is credited with mobilising village leaders to protect and regenerate the forest despite facing threats and hostility. Their efforts transformed the once–depleted hills into a vibrant green forest over the years.

Today, however, that hard-won greenery appears to be under renewed threat. Although forest staff—including the Forester, Forest Guards, Watchers, and other personnel—have been deployed for protection, large-scale degradation allegedly continues unchecked. Environmentalists warn that without urgent action, Dambarugarh Reserve Forest could once again slip into ecological decline.