Green Line: Maharashtra forest department helpline flooded with calls

The official said that so far, there was no single point public interface with the forest department.

Within just five minutes of receiving a call, an SMS and email is sent to the concerned forest officer to act on the complaint.

IN JUST nine days, the first-ever helpline set up in the country by the state Forest department has received as many as 2,000 calls. The ‘Hello Forest’ helpline number 1926 was officially launched on January 5 with an aim to make forest governance transparent and credible. Pravin Shrivastava, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (IT), told The Indian Express that so far, there was no single point public interface with the forest department. The call centre facility has been set up at Goregaon in Mumbai and work has been outsourced to SAAR IT solutions. Experts from Pune and Nagpur will oversee the operations.

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Shrivastava, however, who coordinates the overall operations from Nagpur said that this call centre facility with a dedicated 24×7 helpline was a first in the country. A majority of the calls pertain to forest fires and illicit tree felling, said Sunil Limaye, Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife- Pune division).

Within just five minutes of receiving a call, an SMS and email is sent to the concerned forest officer to act on the complaint. “We have also received compliance reports of action taken in several cases,” Shrivastava said. While a minimum of 48 hours and maximum of four days has been set aside to work on various complaints, the helpline will also try to get back to the caller and inform them about the action taken.

Calls can be made under emergency and general categories. Residents can enquire about plantations, conservation strategies, wildlife information, timber trade, eco tourism and others.

The maximum calls that have been received pertain to forest fires, illicit tree felling, encroachment on forest land and wildlife animal sightings. All the forest officers have been mapped on the database and subject experts have also been selected to provide information on topics related to the forest issues like conservation, plantation, social forestry among others. “We did have call waiting with so many people calling us, but despite the technical hiccups, efforts are being made to attend various complaints,” officials said.

Anuradha Mascarenhas

Anuradha Mascarenhas is a Senior Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. With a career spanning three decades, she is one of the most respected voices in Indian journalism regarding healthcare, science and environment and research developments. She also takes a keen interest in covering women's issues . Professional Background Education: A gold medalist in Communication and Journalism from Savitribai Phule Pune University and a Master’s degree in Literature. Author: She authored the biography At The Wheel Of Research, which chronicles the life and work of Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, the former Chief Scientist at the WHO. Key Focus: She combines scientific accuracy with storytelling, translating complex medical research into compelling public and human-interest narratives. Awards and Recognition Anuradha has won several awards including the Press Council of India's national award for excellence in journalism under the gender based reporting category in 2019 and the Laadli Media award (gender sensitivity -2024). A recipient of the Lokmat journalism award (gender category-2022), she was also shortlisted for the RedInk awards for excellence in journalism-2021. Her debut book At The Wheel Of Research, an exclusive biography of Dr Soumya Swaminathan the inaugural chief scientist of World Health Organisation was also nominated in the Popular Choice Category of JK Paper AUTHER awards. She has also secured competitive fellowships including the Laadli Media Fellowship (2022), the Survivors Against TB – New Research in TB Media Fellowship (2023) and is part of the prestigious 2025 India Cohort of the WomenLift Health Leadership Journey.” Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) 1. Cancer & Specialized Medical Care "Tata Memorial finds way to kill drug-resistant cancer cells" (Nov 26, 2025): Reporting on a breakthrough for triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease. ``Discipline, diet and purpose; How a 97-year-old professor defies ageing'' (Nov 15, 2025) Report about Prof Gururaj Mutalik, the first Head of Department at Pune's B J Government Medical College who at 97 credits his longevity to healthy habits and a strong sense of purpose. 2. Environmental Health (The "Breathless Pune" Series) "Long-term exposure even to 'moderate' air leads to chronic heart, lung, kidney issues" (Nov 26, 2025): Part of an investigative series highlighting that even "safe" pollution levels are damaging to vital organs. "For every 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 level, there was 6-8% jump in medicine sales" (Nov 23, 2025): Using commercial data to prove the direct link between air quality and respiratory illnesses in Pune. 3. Lifestyle & Wellness News "They didn't let cancer, diabetes and heart disease stop them from travelling" (Dec 22, 2025): A collaborative piece featuring survivors who share practical tips for traveling with chronic conditions. ``At 17, his BP shot up to 200/120 mmHG; Lancet study flags why child and teen hypertension doubled between 2000 and 2020'' (Nov 12,2025)--A report that focusses on 17-year-old-boy's hypertensive crisis and reflects the rising global trend of high blood pressure among children and adolescents. 4. Scientific Recognition & Infrastructure "For promoting sci-comm, gender diversity: IUCAA woman prof highlighted in Nature" (Nov 25, 2025): Covering the global recognition of Indian women scientists in gender studies and physics. ``Pune researchers find a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way from early universe'' (December 3, 2025)- A report on how Indian researchers discovered a massive galaxy that existed when the universe was just 1.5 billion years old , one of the earliest to have been observed so far. Signature Beat: Health, Science & Women in Leadership Anuradha is known for her COVID-19 reportage, where she was one of the first journalists to provide detailed insights into the Covishield and Covaxin trials. She has a dedicated interest in gender diversity in health and science, often profiling women researchers who are breaking the "leaky pipeline" in STEM fields. Her writing style is scrupulous, often featuring interviews with top-tier scientists and health experts from various institutions. X (Twitter): @runaanu ... Read More

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