Agartala, 29th June 2026: The Forest Department in North Tripura is facing a major challenge in protecting the district’s vast forest resources due to an acute shortage of manpower. Despite continuous efforts to prevent illegal timber smuggling and other forest-related offences, the shortage of Forest Guards and Foresters in key Forest Protection Units (FPUs) has severely affected surveillance and enforcement activities.
The shortage is particularly noticeable in the Dharmanagar, Juri, and Kanchanpur FPUs, where officials are struggling to maintain regular patrolling across large forest areas. The demand for immediate recruitment of additional Forest Guards and Foresters has been growing among departmental personnel and local residents.
North Tripura Forest Division covers a geographical area of 1,422.19 sq. km, of which 897.9 sq. km, or 63.14 percent, is forest land. The division includes 487.48 sq. km of Reserved Forest, 50.64 sq. km of Proposed Reserved Forest, and 368.78 sq. km of Unclassed/Other Forest Land. The district also shares borders with Assam (53 km), Mizoram (109 km), and Bangladesh (96 km), making forest security more challenging. The presence of the biodiversity-sensitive Rowa Wildlife Sanctuary further increases the importance of effective protection measures.
According to sources in the Forest Department, the Juri FPU currently has only four Forest Guards and three Foresters, while the Kanchanpur FPU has ten Forest Guards and a single Forester. Maintaining round-the-clock surveillance with such limited staff has become extremely difficult.
The manpower crisis has also affected the safety of forest personnel. Sources said Kanchanpur Forest Sub-division protection staff faced attacks twice, while a departmental vehicle was damaged. A similar incident was reported in Dharmanagar.
Meanwhile, forest crimes continue to rise. During 2024-25, the department seized 239.132 cubic metres of timber and 96 vehicles, while in 2025-26 timber seizures increased to 249.96 cubic metres. The number of Offence Reports also rose from 177 to 226.
Residents have urged the intervention of the State Forest Minister, demanding immediate steps to strengthen manpower and protect North Tripura’s forests from illegal activities.
