DHANGADI, JULY 7

The federal Parliament’s Agriculture, Cooperatives and Natural Resources Committee has started investigating alleged irregularities carried out in the name of scientific forest management.

A team of the panel comprising Shanta Chaudhary, Satya Narayan Sharma Khanal and Raj Bahadur Budhthapa initiated the investigation by reaching Kanchanpur yesterday It discussed activities conducted by the local Community Forest Users’ Committee under the scientific forest management programme.

“As there was widespread complaint about the programme (Scientific Forest Management Programme), we set out to investigate,” said Chaudhary, adding that the committee would prepare and submit a report after studying and monitoring the condition of community forests in Tarai districts.

“We’ve heard a lot of complaints about financial and other irregularities, such as cutting down even young trees and focusing on felling trees, hence the investigation,” said Chaudhary.

Meanwhile, separately, a team including technicians under the Public Accounts Committee has finished monitoring forests in Kailali. Team member Prem Ale said the sub-committee would investigate cases in different districts where the forest management programme was being implemented.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on July 8, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.