Jumbo Scare Grips Haridwar Outskirts (India)

For the past few days, local residents, particularly those living on the outskirts of the city, are in the grip of elephant scare. Villagers are having sleepless nights and are patrolling the area at night to make sure they shoo away elephants from agricultural fields and human settlements.

A herd of elephants was recently seen at Jagjeetpur-Lakshar road near DAV School- Police check post. The traffic was disrupted for about 10 minutes as one of the elephant got deviated from the herd.

Traffic personnel had to be deployed at Shyampur-Kotdwar road near Gadowali bridge as a herd of elephants stood standstill on the road while crossing it.

Villages of Missirpur, Katarpur, Panjan Hedi, Ajeetpur, Jagjeetpur, Jeopata, Pathri, Dhanauri, Ferupur, Chandpur, Kota Muradnagar, Telliwala, Bishanpur Kundi, Shyampur and Laldhang are reporting jumbo intrusion on daily basis with several hectares of crops having been ravaged by the animals. Sightings of elephants on Haridwar-Najeebabad-Kotdwara highway are also being reported.

As the road track falls in the corridor of Shyampur- Laldhang stretch, the elephants’ visibility is being reported almost daily.

Many villagers have complained of the animals coming near their residential establishments. When they tried to shoo them away, the elephants intimidated the villagers, they alleged.

Taking cognizance of the complaints, the Forest Department has now set up a special task force to counter the animals. Special vigilance is being maintained and patrolling being done in the affected villages, particularly during dusk and dawn, when the movement of jumbos is slightly more.

DP Uniyal, forest ranger of Raja Ji Tiger Reserve, said vigil had been intensified with forest guards keeping special tab in the affected areas. The villagers had been urged to instantly report elephants sighting. They had been asked to take precautions while moving early in the morning and during dusk, he added.

Dr Ritesh Joshi, a researcher of Asian elephants in Raja Ji Reserve, said the movement of elephants would increase in the coming weeks as the summers are nearing and jumbos are coming out of their hideouts for water resources near human settlements.

Vivek Saini, a farmer of Jeopata village, said a herd of four elephants were seen on the Lakshar road in the wee hours this morning.

The affected villagers have demanded that the state government provide proper compensation for the damage done to their crops by elephants.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/uttarakhand/jumbo-scare-grips-haridwar-outskirts/209318.html