THODUPUZHA: The Forest Department is planning to install an alarm system in Idukki’s Marayoor region to counter sandalwood smuggling which has been on the rise there.The region is known for its sandalwood trees with high oil content, which lure the smugglers to the place. The sandalwood oil extracted from Marayoor is being sold in Europe, which is the largest consumer of sandalwood oil from the region.A proposal has been sent to the government to install an alarm system in the forest area where sandalwood trees are abundant. This will help keep a close watch on the smugglers, Marayoor Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Justin Stanley said.The plan is to install a cable-linked alarm system, wherein the cable, laid underground, would activate the alarm if smugglers breach the barbed wires in areas which are vulnerable to smuggling.The proposal for the Rs 10-lakh project was submitted about four months ago, he said. The department is likely to get clearance for the project this financial year, the DFO said. Increased vigil by the Forest Department in the area has helped in bringing down the number of smuggling incidents, he said.However, some crooks manage to evade the guards and get away with the booty. It is to thwart their attempts that the Forest Department is planning to incorporate modern technology into its functioning.According to the latest census, there are over 58,000 sandalwood trees in the region, which is significantly large compare to those of previous years, Stanley said. The sandalwood forest cover had come down alarmingly in the beginning of the last decade, when smugglers were active in the region.The Marayoor forest area is spread across 1,400 hectares of land. “The department has sufficient staff to protect the natural wealth and their vigilance has helped in controlling smuggling,” the DFO said.The police have been providing vital information to the Forest Department to foil smuggling activities, he said. The fencing put up around the forest land to prevent cattle from eating away the sandalwood saplings, had helped keep the smugglers at bay, he said.“The sandalwood trees in Marayoor contain six per cent of oil. In other regions the content is only one per cent. One kg of sandalwood oil is worth about `1 lakh. One kg of wood costs about Rs 4,000 while its price in the grey market is Rs 2,500,” he said.The Department sells the fully grown sandalwood trees through auction. A sandalwood is ripe for auction when it gains a weight of about 30 to 35 tonnes, Justin Stanley said.
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