Mission to change Pachamalai into sandal hill

Officials said that tribal people are involved in planting. Though the saplings are planted to increase green cover in the hill station, the programme has provided employment opportunity to the tribal people. 

According to the officials, around 5,000 tribals are living in the hilly area in Pachamalai, where the eco-tourism project is almost completed. Further, forest officials are striving hard to help tribal people in every possible to earn a livelihood. 

In the latest NAP, a total of 60,000 sandal wood saplings are being planted. In 2016, over 16,500 sandalwood saplings were raised, protected and planted in the reserve forest regions at Shobanapuram and Sengattupatti extension forestry. 

“As the extension programme for 2017, we have selected six villages in Tiruchy division and each village would have 10,000 sandalwood saplings for which the forest department have already raised 60,000 saplings which would be transplanted in the select regions”, said R Ravikrishnan, Forest Ranger, Thuraiyur Reserve Forest (RF). 

Out of the six villages, four villages-Koppampatti, Rajapalayam, Kancherimalai and Puthur in Thuraiyur range, and two villages- Vairichettipalayam and Muthayampalayam in Tiruchy range were selected and the planting of sapling are underway, the forest ranger said. 

In fact, this year the forest officials had created percolation ponds and desilted some streams. Further, the hilly area witnessed considerable rainfalls, which might save those saplings. “As far as water is concerned, Pachamalai has enough water and we will appoint workers to water the saplings,” said another forest official. 

When District Forest Officer (DFO), N Satheesh was contacted, he said that the saplings are being planted for enriched green cover. “As far maintenance, the forest officials are keen to monitor those saplings which would increase the sandalwood population,” he said.