Forest Watchers, Base Camp Workers, Not Paid Salaries For Last 4 Months

HYDERABAD: Forest and wildlife protection is under severe stress, not just from encroachments of forest areas but also likely demotivated and disheartened foot soldiers of the department who have not been paid their salaries since April of this year.

The forest department, which was years had been dipping into the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority funds, is now reported to be at a loss after it was made clear that salaries for regular forest duties such as protection, and day to day activities for which the department depends on outsourced workers, can no longer be paid from CAMPA funds.

The CAMPA fund is the amount paid by agencies that have sought diversion of forest land for their use, and the funds are released by the Centre based on identified compensatory afforestation and related activities approved at the time of diversion of the said forest land.

“Outsourced workers in the forest department have not been paid for the past four months. The situation is so bad that even if there is a cattle kill by a tiger or a leopard, we no longer have any money to pay as compensation to the cattle owner,” a senior forest department official told Deccan Chronicle.

What makes matters worse for officials who are held responsible for forest protection, encroachment eviction, or wildlife protection, is that the entire ground staff – the cutting edge of forest protection – are outsourced. These employees include forest watchers, base camp workers, strike force staff, animal trackers, vehicle and boat drivers, and even computer operators. Forest department sources said that on an average each district, especially the ones where forest areas exist, has on an average 100 to 150 such workers.

The outsourced workers are not unionized or have a grout that can fight for their rights unlike other levels of officials – such as the Indian Forest Service officers who are in management positions – and this is a serious handicap for them, an official said. Most field level IFS officers keep constantly battling with their headquarters to find a solution to the salary problem, but in most cases, are told to manage the workers, sources in the department said.

“Their salaries range between `10,000 and `15,000 per month. I know of several workers who have pawned what little gold they have to survive. There are several who have no money to take care of their or their family’s health needs,” another official said.