Trains turn timber mafia’s getaway

Men hew down earmarked trees in the evenings, while the women hack them into sticks for the sake of convenience in the wee hours of the next day.

Scores of tribal women, who usually carry the loads, festoon every possible point on the passenger train with these headloads. Using specially made hooks, they suspend loads from window grills. Space is also made at the entrances of compartments and the footboards are also stacked with wood. Even the engine is not spared and some can be seen at the entrance of the motorman’s cabin. Bundles of wood also find their way on to the front and wheel guards of the locomotive, in blatant violation of safety norms.

The loads travel as far as Lonavala and Malavli and find their way into homes and commercial establishments as fire wood or to illegal liquor bhattis at Rs 25 per headload. Central Railway spokesperson Y Kale admits that the locals have been regurlarly misusing passenger trains to transport wood. However, authorities have not been able to enforce order as the carriers are armed with `koitas’ (a kind of weapon), Kale adds. “Railway staff are often threatned by this armed mafia,” he points out.

Today, the forests in the ghat section around Khandala wear a devastated look as a result of large-scale deforestation. The lower reaches of the mountains have lost their green cover and most of the animals and birds have either been killed or have sought better environs. The devastation of the region assumes significance in light of the fact that the forest between Thakur Wadi and Lonavala is the catchment area for rivers like the Ulhas which is a main water source downhill.