India, June 6 -- KANPUR An FIR has been registered against five persons, including the director of the National Sugar Institute (NSI), for the alleged illegal felling and uprooting of over 723 trees within the institute campus, officials said.

It was alleged that large-scale tree felling was carried out without mandatory permission near gate no. 5 of the institute campus and the wood was then sold to a private merchant in Anwarganj. Ashutosh Kumar, Kalyanpur assistant commissioner of police, confirmed registration of the FIR and said the matter was under investigation.

The complaint was registered under relevant sections of the Forest Conservation Act. Lodged by regional forest officer Rakesh Kumar Pandey, it names NSI director Seema Pa...