2200 forest guards to be appointed in Jharkhand

A total 2,200 forest guards will be appointed by January next year and Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das said a letter would be sent to the Centre urging it to form a committee comprising five states to deal with the elephant menace.
Das also directed launching of bamboo plantation drive and reviving water resources in the forest, an official release said.
Chairing the eighth Jharkhand State Wildlife Board meeting here, Das said 2,200 forest guards would be recruited by the end of next month.
There was no appointment of forest guards in the last three decades in Jharkhand, the release said adding a range office would be opened in Bundu area of Ranchi district.

The secretary to the forest department Sukhdev Singh said sanctuaries and villagers were connected to boost eco-tourism.
Five out of 11 sanctuaries would be given priority for making them ideal sanctuaries.
The chief minister asked to send a team to Chhatisgarh to study its work in the forest sector.
The Principal Secretary to the chief minister, Sanjay Kumar and senior forest department officials were present at the meeting.