Shahdol, February 19 A team of forest department employees were taken hostage by timber smugglers in Shahdol district, Madhya Pradesh, before quick intervention by the police led to their rescue, an official said on Thursday.
The hostage situation occurred in the night of February 18-19 in the Amjhor range of the district's northern forest division, he added, noting that four of the seven accused in the case have been arrested.
A team comprising the deputy ranger of the Sidhi Circle and other beat guards was sent to Amjhor on the basis of information that illegal felling of Sal trees was taking place, Taruna Verma, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of the North Forest Division, told