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Assam forest personnel killed in timber smugglers’ attack; 3 injured
The forest team confiscated a tractor and a large amount of timbers from the alleged smugglers in an operation in the Boro Matia Reserved Forest area in Assam’s Goalpara district
A forest department employee has been killed in Assam’s Goalpara district after a group of suspected timber smugglers allegedly attacked him on Monday night, officials said. Three other employees are critically injured.
The incident took place at Krishnai Salpara Darapara area in Goalpara. “Based on a specific information, a team of our officials went to Boro Matia Reserved Forest area to conduct a search operation against alleged illegal timber smuggling on Monday night. During the operation, the forest team confiscated a tractor and a large amount of timber,” a forest official familiar with the development said.
The deceased forest employee has been identified as Rajbir Ahmed (45). According to the officials, he was attacked with bamboo sticks and sharp objects.
“After the incident, police rushed to the spot and took the injured employees to a local government hospital. Doctors declared Rajbir Ahmed dead on arrival,” the official said.
The three injured staff have been identified as Mobinur Rahman, Mustafa Ali, and Najrul Islam. They have deep cuts and severe injuries. They have been sent to the Guwahati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) for advanced treatment and they are undergoing treatment, according to the officials.
“Bamboo sticks, machetes and other sharp objects were used to attack our employees, The preliminary investigation shows that miscreants along with the locals gathered and launched an attack on them,” said an official.
Meanwhile, locals on Tuesday staged a protest against the alleged killing of the forest department employee. They demanded immediate arrest of the culprits and also appealed to the government to assure adequate security to the forest officials.
Police said that they have registered a complaint and they are trying to identify the accused. “Once the injured persons recover, we will record their statements. We will try to identify the persons involved in the attack, after that, they will be arrested,” an official said.
