GUWAHATI:As the man-elephant conflict continued to grow over the years, the issue was on Friday raised in the Assam Assembly.
Opposition Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) MLA Padma Hazarika, bringing a Zero Hour notice on man-elephant conflict, stressed that the issue was more important than flood menace in several parts of the state.
He cited Thursday’s instance of a man being trampled to death by a wild elephant in Sonitpur district, which infuriated the local people and led them to beat up forest department officials who later visited the place.
Hazarika, while underlining the need for more and prompt monetary compensation for damage to life and property by wild animals, also highlighted the need for better coordination between public and forest officials.
He also stressed on the need to enlist help of experts to control and chase away marauding wild elephants and better equipment and vehicles for forest department officials to promptly reach spots where the pachyderms create havoc.
Forest Minister Rockybul Hussain, admitting the problem, said the government was adopting various measures to curtail it.
He stressed on the need to protect elephant habitats and ensure adequate food for the pachyderms as a major measure in ensuring that elephants do not enter human habitations.
Hussain added that monetary compensation had been increased and a mechanism for early disbursement of compensation put into place.
The minister, in reply to a written question, informed that as many as 303 people had been killed in man-elephant conflict in the state in the last five years.
Regarding monetary compensation to next of kin of the deceased, Mr Hussain said Rs 40,000 was given to the victims’ families from 2006 to March 5, 2010 as ex-gratia, while the amount had been increased to Rs one lakh since March 5, 2010.
Meanwhile, as many as 68 rhinos have been poached in Assam in the last five years, Forest Minister Rockybul Hussain informed on Friday.
Replying to separate questions in the state Assembly, Mr Hussain said the highest number of rhinos poached in the last five years was in 2007, when 21 pachyderms were killed.
In 2006, nine rhinos were poached, 16 in 2008, 15 in 2009 and seven in 2010, he added.
The minister said the rhino census in 2009 had recorded a total of 2201 rhinos in the state.
He further informed that altogether 2853 forest guards are employed in the state.
Of them, 655 were employed in the nine wildlife divisions of the state and 2198 in the territorial division. (UNI)