In a bid to boost the morale of the field staff in forest department, the state government has revised the rate of risk allowance on par with police personnel.
A recent government order by state forest department secretary C.V. Shankar said forest personnel were required to serve in the deep interior jungle areas and were prone to wild encounters from elephants and big cats and suffer infestations from leaches and insects and so they had been recommended for revision in risk allowance.
The order further said the allowance now given would not be commensurate with the risk involved while discharging their duties particularly in controlling ganja cultivation and illegal timber felling.
According to sources, the government would incur an additional expenditure close to Rs 90 lakh per annum and the move would benefit 3,367 forest department personnel including 195 rangers.
“The need of the hour is more equipment to the forest department staff and there is a shortage in supply ammunition and weapons to the field staff who combat armed ganja cultivators,” opined a forest ranger of Anamali Tiger Reserve.
However, most of the anti-poaching watchers are recruited from tribal habituations in forest areas and complain that nothing much is done to them.