To meet the staff shortage in Himachal Pradesh State Forest Development Corporation (HPFSDC), 100 ‘Van Veers’ would be engaged, said Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu here on Monday.

Sukhu while presiding over the 214th meeting of the Board of Directors of n HPFSDC, directed the officers to take necessary measures to expedite the disposal of the timber wood stock accumulated in the corporation’s depots so that it could be prevented from rotting.

The Chief Minister also asked to explore the possibility of delegating powers to Divisional Forest Officers (DFOs) along with the officers of the corporation to cut down trees coming in the way of linear projects after the first stage clearance of Forest Conservation Act (FCA) to avoid unnecessary delays.

The Chief Minister said that for the first time, the HPFSDC would engage in mining activities from the Beas river after obtaining FCA clearance. Additionally, he directed the corporation to blacklist defaulting contractors and initiate recovery proceedings against them besides barring them from participating in future tenders.

It was also decided in the meeting to grant another installment of 4 percent DA to all employees from April 1, 2024 and to regularize 80 employees who have completed two years of contractual service.

He disclosed that 618 trees were damaged in Shimla City during the last year’s monsoon fury and by selling the wood of these trees, a profit of Rs. 2.50 crore was earned.

Sukhu commended the corporation’s efforts for earning profits of Rs. 2.17 crore during the financial year 2021-22, Rs. 8 crore during 2022-23 and Rs. 10.04 crore in 2023-24.

He assured that the state government would provide full cooperation to strengthen the Forest Corporation, aiming to make it a self-reliant and profitable organization.

The Board of Directors gave its approval to grant a bonus to the employees of the Corporation for the year 2022-23, benefiting about 227 employees and to increase daily wages to Rs. 400, benefiting the corporation’s daily wagers.

The Corporation also presented a cheque of Rs. 51 lakh to the Chief Minister for the CM Relief Fund.