AGARTALA, Nov 16 – The Tripura Government has decided to set up an elephant reserve in the State to preserve the animal which had nearly disappeared due to large-scale poaching and migration to neighbouring Bangladesh. The latest census has shown that the population of the elephant has gone up from 38 in 2002, when the last census was taken, to 59 now, the State Board for Wildlife said.
The chief wildlife warden, Atul Gupta, said the figure was excellent considering the rapid decline in the number of elephants over the last few years. Just 30 to 40 years ago, elephants were even seen on the streets of Agartala, Forest officials said. The rot actually started with the cutting down of forests for construction of a hydel power project on river Gomati.
With the loss of their habitat, the elephants started migrating to Bangladesh where forests were abundant. Gupta said a large number of elephants had migrated to the Chittagong Hill Tracts in Bangladesh from the Gomati Wildlife Sanctuary. There was a time, according to British surveyor John Hunter’s report, when elephants outnumbered humans in the kingdom during the Colonial times and it was the reason why the colonisers did not consider taking administrative control of the region.
The elephant reserve will be set up in the Atharamura Hills in Dhalai district, which is the natural habitat of the pachyderms. The Forest officials said more than 800 tribal families would be displaced to set up the reserve and the government has decided to form a high level committee to submit a report on rehabilitating them.
Forest officials said due to the ever-dwindling forests and loss of habitats, the jumbos had started invading areas of human habitation, often killing people, damaging crops and razing houses. If a reserve was set up, it would be easier to protect the animal from poachers and other hazards like electrocution, the officials said. – PTI
