Six forest personnel injured in attack by suspected timber smugglers in Tripura

Six forest personnel, including a range officer, were injured after they were allegedly attacked by suspected timber smugglers in North Tripura district, officials said on June 2.

The incident occurred on Monday night, June 1, in the Kanchanpur police station area, where two Forest Department vehicles were also extensively damaged during the assault.

According to officials, a team of forest personnel launched an operation near Chandipur around 11 pm after receiving information about the movement of an illegally timber-laden vehicle. When the driver ignored signals to stop, the team pursued the vehicle in a departmental jeep.

A few kilometres into the chase, the driver abandoned the vehicle and fled the spot. However, shortly afterwards, a group of around 50 suspected smugglers reportedly returned armed with daos and sticks and attacked the forest personnel.

Sub-Divisional Forest Officer (SDFO) Suman Mitra said the forest staff were forced to take shelter in a nearby dense forest to save themselves from the assault.

"Six personnel, including a ranger officer, were injured in the attack and two departmental vehicles were vandalised," Mitra said.

The injured personnel were provided medical treatment, officials said.

A case has been registered in connection with the incident, and an investigation is underway. No arrests have been made so far, officials added.