Athagarh: Going by the startling revelation by the forest department, as many as 51 elephants have died due to one or the other reasons or were poached in the last five years in Athagarh Forest Division.
The death of elephants after coming in contact with live wire accounts for the highest for the deaths. Similarly, elephants’ falling in uncovered pits in this division is another reason for their deaths. Poaching is attributed the third reason for the sudden decrease in the number of jumbos.
Only a very few die a natural death due to old age, says reports of the the forest department.
According to the available figures, at least 11 elephants died in 2013-14. In 2014-15 the causality was all time low with only three deaths. It again increased to 10 elephant deaths each in 2015-16 and 2016-17 in this forest division. Shockingly, the current year of 2017-18 has witnessed the maximum number of pachyderm deaths, i.e. 17.
According to 2015 elephant census, there were 114 elephants in Athagarh forest division. With only one increase in their population, the number reached 115 after two years in 2017. And as per 2018 census, it is guessed that the division has some 140 elephants.
In terms of movement, more numbers of jumbos are roaming in Athagarh and Khuntuni forest range than Narasinghpur East and West range and Badamba range.
Despite the fact that more number of jumbo herds are permanently based in Athagarh forest division, it is yet to be declared as a sanctuary.
Elephants’ straying into human habitations, more frequently in cultivated fields and playing havoc with the crops, lives and properties of people has become an annual affair in this division.
The government has so far given away an amount of Rs 1.12cr towards compensation for crop loss due to jumbos.
Similarly the department is known to have appointed 59 local villagers as temporary staff. They tend to keep a watch over their movement, to take care of wild animals as well as their corridors. The department is said to be spending Rs 3 lakh or so a month towards their salary and other associated expenses.
It has been alleged that the callousness of the department has made a huge difference in the disappearance of these animals. Passing the buck to the electricity department, the forest department says most of the elephants are dying due to sagging live electricity wire.
Assistant engineer CESU, Athagarh Santosh Kumar Samantaray just denied the allegation, terming it as a habitual trick of the forest department to conceal its own faults.
Many ostensible steps are being taken towards putting a check on poaching and loot of forest produce since the appointment of Sushree Lenka, former chairperson of Chilika Development Council as Athagarh divisional forest officer (DFO).
Acting on tip-off from various sources, she Friday conducted raids at Badamba range and arrested Matia Swain, an elephant poacher. Swain confessed to have poached elephants with some of his associates and have sold the tusks in some parts of Nayagarh district.
Lenka said, “Swain’s three associates are on the large, but they will soon be put behind the bars.”
PNN