Jharkhand HC seeks ACB probe against state forest officials

The Jharkhand High Court once again questioned the functioning of the state Forest department and asked whether the 20 top officers of the department have given details of their assets.

The Division Bench of Chief Justice Dr Ravi Ranjan and Justice SN Prasad made this observation on Friday while hearing a case registered suo motu in the death of a baby elephant in Latehar district in September last year.

The high court asked the government whether the top 20 officers of the forest department have given details of their assets and if not, why not get the property of these officers checked by the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB).

The court strongly reprimanded the forest department officials for the lack of forests and wildlife in the state.

It said officers come to the court and leave after making big claims. If the officials are working then where are the forest and wild animals going in the state? In the year 2018, Palamu Tiger Reserve (PTR) claimed to have five tigers, but no one is aware of how many tigers are there now.

The court said that the government is not worried about forest and animals.

The high court directed the forest secretary and other officers to appear in the court for the next hearing along with the PTR map. The next hearing in the matter will be held on February 4.