Nagpur: Shailesh G Tembhurnikar, an officer of 1987 batch of Indian Forest Service (IFS), has been appointed as new Head of Forest Force (HoFF) of Maharashtra Forest Department on Thursday.
Before this appointment, Tembhurnikar was holding the post of Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) and Chief Executive Officer (Maha-CAMPA). Dr YLP Rao, the outgoing PCCF (HoFF) got superannuated recently. The new PCCF (HoFF) Tembhurnikar assumed the charge on Thursday.
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Notably, Tembhurnikar was chosen above Sunita Singh who is senior to him. Had Sunita been appointed to the post, she would have become the first woman forest chief in the history of Maharashtra.
In his career as a forester, Tembhurnikar served as Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (APCCF) at Maha-CAMPA, and APCCF (Conservation). He also held the post of Chief Conservator of Forest (CCF). He was the Regional Director of Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM) and Assistant Director in the Social Forestry Department.
He has also served as Deputy Conservator of Forest (DCF) in East Melghat as well as in Buldhana also. Shailesh Tembhurnikar bagged many awards and medals at state, national and international levels for his contribution in the field of forest development and wildlife conservation. He also participated at different international level wildlife training programmes during his career.
According to a report in a local English daily, as both Tembhurnikar and PCCF (Social Forestry Department) Singh belonged to the 1987 batch, there was a tussle with one lobby pressing for a Marathi ‘manus’ while the other wanting State’s first woman forest chief. Singh seemed to have the edge as she had higher rankings and was state’s senior-most IFS officer. While Singh’s seniority number and officer code was MS/146, Tembhurnikar was MS/161, the report added.
The report further said that Singh had effectively handled protection issues like timber smuggling, encroachments removal, and wildlife conservation etc. She had both national and international exposure and has represented the country on global platforms like UNICEF and UNDP.
Tembhurnikar is a civil engineer and a post-graduate in forestry. He has attended several international training programmes and received a gold medal in 2006. He conducted many sessions on carbon finance and assessment in forestry in the State.
