Keonjhar: Laying of slurry pipelines in elephant corridors of Keonjhar district has posed a serious threat to the life of pachyderms travelling from one jungle to another in search of food, a report said Thursday. The matter came to the fore after a consultancy firm was found digging pits for laying slurry pipelines along Keonjhar Ghatagaon road passing through an elephant corridor. Reports said that for the past year, the pits are being dug up on the roadside and the adjoining jungles for laying pipelines for iron ore transportation.
Meanwhile, animals fail to cross to the other part of the road as the agency has stopped the work midway and left the pipes on the roadside. It was also noticed that in many places pits have not been covered with soil after laying the pipelines. This poses a serious threat to the animals during their movement. The road is regularly taken by senior administrative and forest officials but none have spared a thought to address this problem. Elephants residing in various jungles of Keonjhar district move from one jungle to another in search of food and water. During their movement, they often come across roads and have to cross them to get to their destination.
Notably, National Highways 20, 49, and 520 are often crossed by pachyderms during their movement. Illegal parking of vehicles on the roadside as well as pits and craters dug up by some firms poses a serious threat to the life of pachyderms. The agency laying the pipelines has allegedly dumped the pipes on the roadside and kept the pits uncovered for years together. The forest department except for putting up an information plaque has done little to ward off the threat of pachyderms. When contacted, Sadar forest ranger Bijay Kumar Mohanta said that the consultancy firm has been directed to immediately fill the pits after completion of works in the elephant corridors.