KADAPA, AP: Forest Department officials today arrested two red sanders smugglers and seized nine logs of the precious wood.
The smugglers, hailing from neighbouring Tamil Nadu, were nabbed near Puttakanama under Bhakarapeta forest range in the district, said Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Venkata Subba Reddy.
Nine red sanders logs were also seized from them, he said.
Woodcutters and smugglers from Tamil Nadu districts like Vellore, Selam, Dharmapuri, Tiruvallur and Tiruvannamalai are active in Kadapa district, Reddy said.
Red sandalwood smugglers are getting caught rarely , possibly due to secret understanding with Forest officials.
The forest and police departments are trying hard to check the red sander smuggling, which has become an inter- state problem, he said.
Red sanders, also known as red sandalwood, is a valuable wood which has a huge demand overseas, particularly in China, Japan and East Asia where it is used for making cosmetic products, furniture, musical instruments and is even used in traditional medicines.
Red sanders grow mainly in Seshachalam hill ranges spread across Kadapa, Chittoor and Kurnool in the Rayalaseema region and parts of Nellore district in Andhra Pradesh. Majority of red sanders smuggling takes place in Chittoor and Kadapa.
