Panchayat bodies of four villages in the district have come out with their own way of dealing with those who cutting trees in the densely forested Bastar region.
The chiefs of Panchayat bodies in Rajagaon, Baniagaon, Karanji and Bakhra villages have jointly issued a statement that anybody found cutting trees in the forests near their villages would be expelled from the village.
The Sarpanchs — Dashrath Netam, Abhishek Dixit, Motiram and Budhram of Rajagaon, Baniagaon, Karanji and Bakhra villages respectively along with the villagers have pledged that they would take action against villagers who take away their traditional source of livelihood dependent on the forest resources by cutting trees.
The villagers had been complaining about rapidly depleting plants and trees in the forests in the vicinity of the four villages where they had been collecting ‘Mahua’, ‘Charbjij’, ‘Imli’, Tora and Amla for their survival. The villagers have now been forced to take a decision to take action against their own people who would be found cutting trees in the forest.