The Odisha government, which has faced criticism over its failure in protecting the elephants, told the high court last month that it would set up fast track courts for speedy trial of wildlife offences
The carcass of a 20-year-old elephant was found in a jungle under Odisha’s Athgarh forest division on Monday.
Four elephants have been killed in Odisha this year. (HT PHOTO (Representative))
Divisional forest officer JD Pati said it was unclear how the tusker died. “We have sent samples for a laboratory test and would be in a position to comment on the cause of death after getting the reports in a week,” said Pati.
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The tusks of the elephant were intact. A local resident said the elephant probably came in contact with charged peripheral fencing around a vegetable farm inside the cashew forest. “The elephants may have been looking for food...and subsequently got electrocuted. It seems the peripheral fence of the vegetable farm was charged...”
The carcass of a sub-adult elephant was earlier recovered from the Similipal Tiger Reserve last week. On January 21, the decomposed carcass of an elephant with its tusks missing was found in the reserve.
Tusks were recovered from seven people arrested for their alleged involvement in the poaching of the elephant. Last month, another carcass of an elephant was recovered from Sambalpur nearly a month after poachers electrocuted it.
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In December, three forest officials of the Similipal Tiger Reserve were arrested over burning a carcass of a tusker.
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In December, three forest officials of the Similipal Tiger Reserve were arrested over burning a carcass of a tusker.
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The Odisha government has faced criticism over its failure in protecting the elephants. It told the Orissa high court last month that it would set up fast-track courts with special public prosecutors for speedy trial of wildlife offences.
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.
