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| Do not IMPORT OF TIMBER FROM OUTSIDE: Contractor to state | | | Jammu, May 16
Smelling a foul play and attempting a last minute desperate bid aimed at stalling final decision on import of timber from outside state during Thursday's crucial cabinet meeting in Srinagar small contractors association headed by younger brother of chief Ministr Ghulam Nabi Azad on wednesday exposed the mismanagement and inefficiency of inexperienced officers of state forest corporation and apprised the state government that it would in the interest of the state if it reviews the proposed move fraught with far greater implications.
Addressing a well attended media conference here in Jammu, Ghulam Mustafa Azad along with other officer bearers and small contractors made an attempt to educate the state government and the forest ministry before giving green signal to the import of timber from outside the state.Highlighhting their plight , Mustafa made it clear that the move would add to the miseries of the small contractors and shuld not be given go ahead.
In an apparent reference to the coalition partners and forest minister, a staunch Mufti Mohd Sayeed loyalist, Mustafa Azad told reporters that the manner in which the agenda of importing timber was given top priority by forest minister without considering their viewpoint has lead to utter frustration in the minds of small contractots.
He said only few officers in the state forest corporation enjoying close patronage of the powers that be are bent upon ruining the profit making corporation and are moving towards monopolizing its operations.
Objecting to the idea and proposed move of import of timber from outside the state, Mustafa Azad while issuing a note of caution to the state government made it clear that if such a decision was taken by the state cabinet it would kick start the decline of the state forest corporation as it would be extremely difficult for the government to sustain the huge corporation with an employee strength of over 4000 workers.
He said, the contractors working with the state forest corporation are already facing many hardships and now if the state govt decided to import timber from outside states it would lead to total shut down of the corporation .He said they donot undertsand why the PDP minister is in such a hurry. He said at present the SFC is generating a revenue to the tune of Rs 100 crores and feeding a work force of over 25000 and large number of businessmen are also earning their bread and butter from the industry.
He said the businessmen are already suffering on various counts such as non-regualtion of payement on forest measurement volume in off road transporation activities ,non-availability of labourers, non-allotment of work in time and fixing of time period with out accessing the working condition. Giving account of their previous meetings with the officers of the state forest corporation and the forest Minsiter ,GhulamMustafa Azad told reporters instead of facilitating them and solving their problems the SFC management mooted the proposal to the cabinet though board of directors for importing teh timber from other states, which according to him is clearly a negative policy. He said the proposed policy would certainly put the technical labour who is in lumbering occupation from centuries together and totally depend upon forest jobless and also deprive the from their livelihood as there is no other source of income.
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