Bhubaneswar: Hundreds of sheep rearers in Niali area are now looking up to the sky for help as the Forest department officials have failed to catch the unknown creatures which are on a killing spree and have cancelled their mission.
“We are unable to find out as to which animal is behind the killing of sheep in Niali area. It is still a mystery for us,” admits SS Srivastava, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests.
However, the PCCF was quick to blame the ‘sudden introduction’ of sheep farming in Niali area for the incidents.
“The problem with Niali is that sheep were suddenly introduced in the ecosystem of the area. Earlier, the villages were rearing only cows, goats and buffaloes. If wolves were there in the area, they might be depending on some other herbivorous animals, which were dependent on the grazing land (grass) of the area. When sheep were introduced there might have been shortage of feed which could have resulted in disappearance of those herbivorous animals. So, the wolves have now turned to the sheep,” Srivastava said.
However, wildlife experts dismissed the narrative of the forest chief. “The sheep were there for more than 50 years. It is not a recent phenomenon. The forest officials should seek opinion of experts from outside the state since they have failed to tackle the menace,” said secretary of Wildlife Society of Orissa, Biswajit Mohanty.
The Forest department has not released any compensation for the affected farmers, prompting the villagers to conduct combing operation in the forests to catch the killer animals. However, the top official claimed that the search operation is going on in the presence of forest officials.
“We don’t have the provision of compensation for sheep deaths. We have informed this to the government,” claimed Srivastava.
Notably, villagers have killed some wild animals in the region and captured a female jackal Sunday. The jackal was sent to Nandankanan Zoological Park (NZP). Forest officials, later admitted that jackals were not behind the sheep killings.
Meanwhile, experts raised apprehension that things would go out of hand if the officials continue to adopt a lukewarm approach over the issue.
“The existing rule does not include compensation for sheep and goats. We have recognised this lacuna long ago and have been demanding appropriate amendments to the rules. However, nothing has been done during the last two years. The government should immediately release the compensation and take steps to stop the kind of combing operation by the villagers in the forests. Otherwise, more wild animals will perish,” Mohanty added.
Environmentalist and president of the Orissa Environmental Society Sunder Narayan Patro said, “The issue has been hitting the headlines for over a month now and we are clueless about what is going on there. The state government has to request experts from across the country for their assistance. They also have to publish an advisory about this issue. Moreover, the compensation has to be released on priority basis since most of the affected people are poor farmers.”
Jose K Joseph, OP
