Lax security measures on and around National Highway 31 have led to a spurt in timber smuggling, mostly from the Dooars. The mafia has actually hit upon ingenious ways the smugglers know how to mark the illegally felled timber to give the "unsuspecting policeman the slip", said forest department officials. Admitting to the growing menace, Raiganj, West Bengal divisional forest officer Ajay Kumar Das said special measures are being taken to curb the problem.