Bhubaneswar: In a major push towards wildlife conservation, the state government organised a high-level workshop on human-wildlife conflict mitigation at the state Convention Centre, Lok Seva Bhawan, recently.
Presiding over the session via video conference, Forest Environment and Climate Change (FE&CC) Minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia proposed the implementation of a structured, roster-based system for community volunteers, specifically targeting the roles of ‘Gaja Sathis’ and ‘Bidyut Praharis’.
The minister emphasised that resolving these conflicts requires dedication that can only be achieved through continuous, 24/7 oversight of wildlife movements.
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To ensure the strategy was grounded in reality, he engaged directly with field volunteers sharing firsthand challenges, addressed concerns raised by MLAs joining from various districts, and integrated the specialised perspectives of NGO representatives.