Patna, Nov. 15: People willing to provide vital information to the management of Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) through phone would not have to bear the call charges. The VTR management has decided to start a “toll free” number for this purpose.

This facility will be set up at the wireless centre of VTR headquarters in Bettiah. An operator will be put on duty to receive phone calls. Also an answering machine will be installed along with the phone so that in case the call goes unattended, the caller can record his/her message on the answering machine.

It has also been decided to maintain a register of the message received through phone calls so that the VTR officials, who would monitor the register on a regular basis, can keep tabs on the information coming from field.

The message recorded on the answering machine will not to be deleted unless either the field director or the divisional forest officers posted in VTR hears the transcript and gives permission for deleting it.

“It is going to be a centralised system of intelligence gathering from the field. It will be a part of the management effort to open all possible channels which can be useful in keeping tabs on unscrupulous elements who damage the reserve for personal gains,” a senior VTR official, told The Telegraph.

As things stand now, the field officials have their own sources of intelligence gathering and in case the official concerned is not present or is at such a place where mobile network is not available, the intelligence gathering system gets adversely affected.

He said as a corollary of this step, it has also been decided that either the field director or any one of the two divisional forest officers would remain in the field on any given day so that on getting information, they can reach the spot in the forest in time.

Moreover, it has also been decided that the informer would not be asked to reveal his/her identity.