Probe ordered into death of 18 elephants in Assam
The Hindu
The hillock where a thunderbolt is said to have killed the pachyderms is close to the site for a controversial solar power plant
Assam’s Minister for Environment and Forest, Parimal Suklabaidya, has ordered an enquiry into the death of 18 elephants on a hillock in central Assam’s Nagaon district Wednesday night. A thunderbolt is said to have killed the herd of elephants on Bamuni Hill within the Kundali Proposed Reserve Forest under the Kathiatoli forest range. The probe was ordered after Mr. Suklabaidya and a team of senior officials, veterinarians and wildlife specialists inspected the site of the incident on Friday morning.The State government on Friday constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by Additional Director-General of Police, Manish Kharbikar of the Economic Offences division of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to probe the alleged multi-crore scam in the government-run Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation.
The Deputy Commissioner and the Election Officer for Dakshina Kannada Lok Sabha constituency M. P. Mullai Muhilan said here on Friday that over 600 staff will be involved in the counting of votes cast in the April 26 elections, at the counting centre at the National Institute of Technology – Karnataka, Surathkal, on June 4.