PUBLISHED : 29 Jul 2023 at 04:00
The head of Khao Kho National Park has been ordered transferred to an inactive post, and an inquiry launched after several resorts were found encroaching on a forest reserve in Phetchabun province.
On Thursday, a snap inspection was conducted, led by the Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc) and Khao Kho National Park chief Prasan Iadsang.
It focused on Pha Hua Sing (lion head cliff), which is part of the park.
They found two resorts illegally occupying park territory. The first one was Phu Thap Boek Suansawan, situated about 200 metres from the edge of Pha Hua Sing on a 69-rai (110,400-square-metre) plot of land. The second resort, known as Good View-Hot View Suansawan Phu Thap Boek, was approximately 100 metres from the cliff’s edge and included a 100-metre-long stretch of land being used for camping.
Documentation for both sites was seized, and charges were laid for violating forestry laws, including the unauthorised destruction of natural resources.
Atthaphon Charoenchansa, director-general of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, said yesterday that the issue is not being taken lightly, and the head of the national park was ordered transferred from the area to an inactive post and will be subjected to a thorough investigation by a committee.
Demolition of the illegal resorts has been authorised, Mr Atthaphon added.