By News Agency of Kashmir
Jammu : Claiming that the appointments made by him in the year 1996 were in no way illegal, Former Forest Minister and NC leader Chowdery Muhammad Ramzan today alleged that `frustrated’ forest minister Qazi Muhammad Afzal was trying to divert the attention of people from publicized Kundal Committee report which has indicted him (Qazi) for the misappropriations, bungling and mismanagement in the department.
Addressing a press conference, here today, Ramzan alleged that the present forest minister Qazi Muhammad Afzal was knee deep in corruption and should resign from the cabinet on moral grounds.
Claiming that the appointments made in the department in the year 1996, being referred by the coalition government as illegal, were challenged in the state High Court, which later dismissed the petitioner with the observations that the appointments have been made in a fearful manner.
“The minister chooses to address a press conference at Srinagar where he accused me of making 750 appointments in the Forest Department and making 25 appointments in State Pollution Control Board in violating all norms and regulations”.
“I am challenging the present forest minister on the allegations as I know that we have made all those appointments as per rules and regulations”, he added.
The recruitments, he said were made in 1996 and after that about six forest ministers took the charge of the forest department from time to time, adding “After me Peerzada G A Shah, GM Sofi, Tariq Hamid Karra, Qazi Muhammad Afzal and even the chief minister look after the department for three months and finally Mr Qazi again take over the department”.
He said if there were some irregularities in the department then why no body even Mr Qazi himself did not point out any thing adverse before the Kundal report was made public.
“Now when Mr Qazi himself got trapped, he started leveling allegations against me to save his own skin”.
“The militancy was at peak when we took the reins of power in October 1996”, he said adding priority of the government at that time was to provide employment to the youth who were taking the path of violence and for that matter even the upper age limit was increased.
Referring to the appointments made in during the tenure, he said that all Gazetted posts were referred to PSC and non Gazetted to the SSRB.
Mr. Ramzan said that appointment of class fourth was made by the Ministers and deputy commissioners, who were empowered and competent to make. He said that National conference made appointment boards for filling the class IVth posts and the recruitments were made by these boards.
“Mr Qazi has mentioned only 750 appointments but there are more such appointments made by our government as per the prescribed norms”.
The appointments in IWDP were made on purely need basis as present government is doing.
He said that scenario in the department was worsening day by day and as per record earlier 10/10 sq kms area was being looked after by one range officer but presently 400 sq kms area is being looked by one range officer.
“The present government has no policy for appointing qualified forest graduates and post graduates in forest department and time will come that there will be no officer in forest from state of Jammu and Kashmir and every senior level category will be filled by non-state subjects”.
Referring to State Forest Corporation (SFC), Mr Ramzan said at the time when National Conference took over in 1996 the corporation was in bad shape and it owed about Rs 35 crore to Jammu and Kashmir Bank.
“It was due to our efforts that we transformed the SFC into a result oriented corporation and about rupees one hundred and twenty crore of revenue was generated from the timber collected from the forests by the SFC”.
“Only 4-7 lakh cft was collected annually before 1996 and the forests were open to allbut when we took over a record of 38-40 lakh cft timber was collected annually with which not only the liability of JK bank was liquidated but even 600 employees of the corporation were given the salaries in time”.
He said that his government sought permission from Supreme Court after the blanket ban on forest produce was imposed by it.
“Supreme Court has allowed the state to collect 80 lakh cft annually from the forests so where comes the need of importing timber” he questioned Qazi adding that during NC government state was exporting 40 lakh cft annually and the coalition government is importing degraded timber for the consumers of the state.
He said despite of having large quantity of timber available in the state, government opted for import that too of inferior quality from out side the sate. “The move of importing the timber form outside the state was clearly to benefit some persons”.
The Forest Protection Force was constituted to save the green gold of the state but despite the lapse of more than five years, the service rules have not been formulated till now. “The employees of the FPF were to be given weapons so as to save themselves from the smugglers but government seems to be sleeping over the matter which clearly indicates that government is pro-smugglers rather than acting positively to save the forests of the state”.