Rail barricading project to mitigate human-elephant conflict gets a push

State Cabinet approves ₹210 crore for mitigating human-elephant conflicts in Chamarajanagar district, including railway barricades and wildlife sanctuary measures.

The State Cabinet took note of the imperatives of minimising human-elephant conflicts in Chamarajanagar district and approved ₹210 crore for taking mitigatory measures.

The decision was taken in the meeting held at M.M. Hills on Thursday. The measures include the installation of railway barricades on the forest boundary in villages abutting national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.

Chamarajanagar has two tiger reserves and one wildlife sanctuary, and the incidents of elephants straying into human landscape are a matter of concern for local villagers as well as the authorities. The installation of railway barricades is expected to check the movement of elephants into villages.

Though the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that ₹210 crore has been approved for the purpose, the Cabinet note mentions the amount as ₹157 crore. Sources in the forest department speculated that the remaining money was perhaps for soft releasing of wild animals captured in conflict situations, in the Bhadra sanctuary.

Meanwhile, the Minister for Forests, Ecology, and Environment, Eshwar Khandre, said the funds will be utilised for the construction of elephant trenches, tentacle fencing, solar fences, and railway barricades to prevent human-wildlife conflicts in and around the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, M.M. Hills, and Biligiri Ranganathaswamy Temple Tiger Santuary.

This is an additional grant which will help in the construction of 88 km of railway barricades, 53 km of elephant trenches, and 50 km of solar hanging fences (solar tentacle fencing).

Earlier, in a meeting with the officials, Mr. Khandre directed the officials to take measures to control the increasing incidents of crop damage and human casualties caused mainly by elephants.