MACHANG, Jan 18 — The Kelantan Forestry Department (JPNK) has denied the image of traces of forest logging activities recorded by a drone that went viral yesterday, was near the tiger habitat or the Orang Asli village in Pos Bihai, Gua Musang.

JPNK director, Abdul Khalim Abu Samah said the image taken using a drone showed the distance was close but instead it was between five to six kilometres from the location of the recent tiger attack.

"I advise the public not to manipulate the image as the logging location is not close to the tiger habitat or the location of the wild animal attack.

"Checks revealed that the location of the tiger attack, Pos Bihai, is an Orang Asli settlement area outside the Perias Permanent Forest Reserve,” he told reporters after attending the Bukit Bakar Eco-Forest Park opening ceremony officiated by the Kelantan Mentri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob, here yesterday.

He said this when asked to comment on media reports regarding allegations by a non-governmental organisation that recorded an image using a drone to detect logging activities in the tiger habitat area located near the Orang Asli village in Pos Bihai, Gua Musang.

Abdul Khalim said most of the Perias Forest Reserve is a production forest and there are several forest plantation development areas along the route to Pos Bihai and has been gazetted as a Protection Forest (Water Catchment Forest) by the state government in 2019. — Bernama