JAMMU, FEB 04 (KNS): The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Wednesday informed the legislative assembly that it does not maintain specific records on timber distribution to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) population, raising questions about the monitoring of resource allocation in the union territory.
The information was part of a written government reply to a query by People's Democratic Party (PDP) legislator Waheed-ur-Rehman Para during the ongoing budget session.
According to official data as per news agency Kashmir News Service (KNS) tabled in the House, significant volumes of timber were extracted from Kashmir's forests over the last five years.
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The figures as per KNS show the North Kashmir Circle recorded its highest extraction of 13.979 lakh cubic feet in 2022-23, while the South Kashmir Circle saw a peak of 7.354 lakh cubic feet in 2020-21.
The government, however, stated in its reply, "No separate data regarding ST beneficiaries is maintained by the J&K Forest Development Corporation Limited."
It said timber is currently allotted "on a first-come, first-served basis" as per a 2018 government order, with no dedicated system to track or prioritise the tribal population. (KNS)