Sanjeev Chaturvedi, a Ramon Magsaysay award winner, has withdrawn from an investigation into the participation of authorities in illegal structures in Uttarakhand’s Corbett Tiger Reserve, alleging conflicting claims from high government officials about his designation as the investigating officer.
In a letter to Rajiv Bhartari, the head of the Forest Force, he said that despite having investigated “hundreds” of corruption cases, his “every appointment to examine a case evoked the type of worry, dread, bewilderment, and apprehension as in this instance.”
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With a hint of irony, the Indian Forest Services (IFS) official expressed his unwillingness to take up the investigation in such circumstances and encouraged authorities to first make up their minds about really punishing the perpetrators in a case before requesting him to investigate it.
Mr. Chaturvedi also sent a newspaper item with his letter detailing the responses of Chief Wildlife Warden J S Suhag, Additional Principal Secretary (Forest) Anand Bardhan, and Forest Minister Harak Singh Rawat to his appointment, implying that the decision was not warmly received.
Mr. Chaturvedi, the chief conservator of forest (research) in Haldwani, resigned even before the investigation began, citing the negative reactions to his appointment. He has a reputation for being a trustworthy officer who has conducted impartial investigations into several incidents of corruption.
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The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) conducted a field visit to the Pakhro and Morghatti zones of the Kalagarh forest division, which are located within the tiger reserve’s buffer zone, and discovered that illegal construction of buildings, bridges, and water bodies had been carried out there without prior approval from authorities. It had suggested a vigilance investigation and disciplinary measures against the officials implicated.
