Post News Network
Joda, Feb 7: As many as 18 elephants have sneaked into Gurubeda, Khandabandha and Kakarpani areas under this block in Keonjhar, forester Bijay Kumar Mohanta said Saturday.
While 12 jumbos were spotted in Gurubeda area, the other six pachyderms were seen in Khandabanda and Kakarpani areas, Mohanta said, adding, the animals have neither damaged any crops nor caused casualty so far.
An eight-member squad has been formed to monitor the movement of the herd. Besides, the station managers of different stations have been alerted to reduce the speed of the trains on the identified locations as the railway tracks pose threat to the lives of the elephants, the forester said. The herd has migrated from Sundargarh district, sources said.
Three elephants had been killed on Jurudi-Nayagarh rail route August 16, 2012. Following the incident, the
department had pulled up its socks and started monitoring the movement of the pachyderms. Environmentalists say, Baitarani reserve forest and the interior areas of Joda block are the most preferred destinations for the jumbos in this region. The rise in mining activities, frequent detonations and sounds generated by the earth-moving equipment in the forest had adversely affected the
migration of elephants into the area. The jumbos are heading back again as the rate of extraction has reduced significantly in the past two years, they say.
