West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday directed the Forest Department and the police to launch a concerted drive against illegal sawmills and timber smugglers, two days after ordering a statewide crackdown on illegal liquor and gambling dens.
“The Forest Department must stop tree theft, timber smuggling and illegal sawmills. Take the help of the police wherever necessary so that trees are not cut before they reach maturity. Just as we have dismantled organised syndicates and other illegal activities, we must eliminate timber smuggling as well,” he said.
Launching Aranya Saptah (Forest Week) 2026, a week-long statewide afforestation programme, Adhikari also announced a target of planting and nurturing 1.10 crore tree saplings across West Bengal as part of Centre’s ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’ (One tree in the name of the mother) initiative.
The Chief Minister inaugurated the programme at Central Park in Salt Lake, marking the start of Forest Week, which will be observed from July 14 to July 20.
Calling for a stronger Forest Department, the Chief Minister directed officials to submit proposals to fill existing vacancies and announced that recruitment of forest personnel would henceforth be carried out through the Police Recruitment Board.
The Chief Minister further said the government ultimately aimed to plant 10 crore trees this year through a collective effort involving government agencies, industries and the public.
Stressing that the survival of saplings was more important than the number planted, Adhikari said, “When I was Chairman of the Haldia Development Authority, I monitored plantations myself. If we planted 1,000 trees, only around 500 survived after three years. Planting is not enough; maintenance is equally important.”
Drawing comparisons with other states, Adhikari noted that Uttar Pradesh had announced a target of planting 26 crore trees and urged Members of Parliament, MLAs, panchayats and municipalities to compete in plantation drives.
“Let there be healthy competition among elected representatives to plant and nurture more trees,” he said.
Addressing the gathering, the Chief Minister also expressed concern over what he described as the steady decline of West Bengal’s forest cover.
“If you look at Jhargram, Purulia and Bankura from the air, you will feel sad. Ten years ago these areas had dense forests. Today the situation is completely different,” he said.
He said similar degradation was visible in the forests of Chalsa, the Terai, the Dooars and Jaldapara.
“It saddens me. You have destroyed everything and have not spared the trees either. We have to protect the environment and rebuild our forest wealth,” he said.
Referring to the growing incidence of human-elephant conflict in Jangalmahal and other forested regions, Adhikari said conservation efforts must strike a balance between protecting wildlife and safeguarding human lives.
“We have to protect elephants, but we must also reduce the loss of human life caused by elephant movement,” he said.
Alleging that the previous government had failed to adequately strengthen the Forest Department, Adhikari said it had neglected the sector by not providing sufficient manpower, infrastructure or financial support.
As part of the programme, the Forest Department signed a series of Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with public sector organisations and institutions to support large-scale plantation drives.