Md. Abdul Qaiyum, Moulvibazar 

Organized timber smuggling syndicates continue to pillage valuable tree species from Lauachhara National Park despite the political transition of August 5, 2024, leaving the reserve's biodiversity and wildlife habitats critically compromised.

Historically dominated by political figures from the ousted regime—including former Agriculture Minister Abdus Shahid and his associates—the timber theft network remains operational under shifted political backing. Forest Department sources confirm that at least seven criminal cases naming 21 suspects have been filed over the past 18 months regarding large-scale tree felling, though primary ringleaders remain unapprehended.

The latest incident occurred during the early hours of September 7 in the Janakichhara area along the Sreemangal-Komolganj road, where smugglers felled and trafficked a massive teak tree with a 7-foot girth, valued at approximately Tk 1 lakh. Following the theft, the Janakichhara Beat Officer filed a case at Komolganj Police Station. Police subsequently arrested one syndicate member, identified as Ansar Ali, using local closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, though key masterminds remain evasive.

Forest officials cited heavy rainfall and acute manpower shortages—noting that only three staff members and one beat officer oversee the 1,250-hectare national park—as operational vulnerabilities exploited by loggers. Meanwhile, environmental advocates, including Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA) National Council Member A.S.M. Saleh Sohail, highlighted that deforestation, habitat fragmentation, eco-resort encroachment, traffic noise, and railway tracks inside the park are escalating human-wildlife conflicts, driving venomed snakes and pythons into nearby human settlements.

Sreemangal Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation Division Range Officer Kazi Nazmul Haq affirmed that anti-poaching and recovery operations led by the beat officer are ongoing to recover the stolen teak timber and prosecute all involved individuals.