Jeep carrying illegal Khair logs seized in Himachal's Hamirpur driver held

Hamirpur (HP), Mar 21(PTI) A team of the forest department impounded a jeep carrying illegally felled Khair logs and arrested its driver near in Himachal Pradesh’s Hamirpur district, officials said on Friday.
    The arrest was made late Thursday near Kanchi Mor in the Mandap area, with a case lodged at Hamirpur police station against others involved in the case and efforts are on to apprehend those who fled from the spot, a forest department spokesperson said.
    The state government has banned tree felling, and violations are dealt with strictly, officials added.
    During the departmental investigation, seven logs were recovered from the jeep, while around 45 large logs of Khair were found at the spot. The exact value of the seized wood will be determined after measurement, they said.
    Suresh Kumar, Block Officer of the Naudan Forest Department, said the operation was carried out during night patrolling, during which five large trees were found to have been felled.
    A battery-operated saw, an electric cutter, and an oil bottle were also recovered from two cars parked nearby, he added. Further investigation is underway.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)