Jajarkot, February 24

Area Forest Office in Bheri Malika Municipality, Jajarkot, began demolishing houses and huts built on encroached public land and forest from yesterday as per its campaign to remove illegally built structures.

As many as four new huts constructed in Khirkhire Community Forest were demolished in the first day of the campaign, said forest officer Rajendra Prasad Shah. The huts were removed as per the prevailing Forest Act, said Shah.

He complained that their repeated requests to the District Forest Office to remove the illegally built structures had gone unheeded.

The DFO failed to remove the illegally built settlements,” he added. According to Shah, the encroachers have been warned against building new huts and houses on the encroached land as well as the forest area.

A joint team comprising members from the DFO and District Police Office, led by Shah, began demolishing the illegally built structures.

Local administration, political parties and other stakeholders have extended support to the drive.