M F AHMAD
Daltonganj, April 9: The Palamu Tiger Reserve management is contemplating radio-collaring its elephants.
There are 200 wild elephants in this tiger reserve with some tuskers.
Chhattisgarh has done the maximum number of radio-collaring of its elephants over the last four or five years. Sources said that the elephants of Chhattisgarh do come to Jharkhand.
Taking a lesson from Chhattisgarh, PTR is also planning to go for it, although it is in a very early stage.
Mukesh Kumar, deputy director South division of PTR, said: “We are really mindful of radio-collaring our elephants. We will very soon prepare and send a proposal to our chief conservator of forest and field director PTR Kumar Ashutosh in this regard for its onward submission to the principal chief conservator of forest Jharkhand. The permission is to come from above.”
He said Chhatisgarh has done radio-collaring of its elephants quite successfully. There is no reason why PTR should not do it.
Asked if there is any budgetary allocation for it, Mukesh Kumar said, “we will make a budget for it in this financial year 2022- 23. It will be a pilot project.”
He said that the PTR officials face complaints when elephants destroy or damage household property, standing crops and even kill people. A huge compensation is given in the event of death caused by an elephant.
At present, the Jharkhand government gives Rs. 4 lakhs as compensation for the loss of life by the elephant which is to be increased now to Rs. 6.5 per casualty. A decision to this effect has been taken in the assembly session.
Meanwhile, an additional director of veterinary services wildlife of Tamil Nadu (retired) Dr N S Manoharan took part in the workshop on capacity building of frontline staff of PTR at Maromar.
Manoharan spoke on the management of elephants and their handling if it goes sick or amok or aggressive.
He was recently in Chhatisgarh’s Ambikapur elephant reserve from where he was invited to PTR on Friday to update the rangers, foresters and forest guards about the art of taking notes and care of the elephants.
“Manoharan asked our men to be wary of zoonotic diseases. Not much attention or seriousness is given to zoonotic disease, which is a disease of animals affecting human lives here,” said Mukesh Kumar adding that the notes given by this veteran forest officer were very useful in the upkeep of the wild elephants.
“It was Manoharan who also prompted us to go for the radio-collaring of the elephants here in the PTR,” Mukesh added.
Sources said radio-collaring may be a new thing in the PTR but it is quite a common practice in other reserves.
