E-Paper
Orissa high court to hold interaction session on rising human-elephant conflict
The Orissa high court has asked the state’s chief conservator of forests to come prepared for a detailed presentation on the comprehensive action plan on curbing elephant deaths due to poaching, electrocution and train collision
Amid rising deaths of humans and elephants due to man-animal conflict, the Orissa high court has decided to conduct an interaction session on the issue on September 11.
While hearing four public interest litigations (PILs) filed by Gita Rout (2022), Mrinalini Padhi (2015), Dwija Dalpati (2015) and Balgopal Mishra (2013) on the issue, chief justice Subhasis Talapatra and justice Savitri Ratho asked all members of the Joint Task Force looking into cases of poaching of elephants, counsels of the PIL petitioners and intervenors in the cases to be present on the assigned date and time.
In August last year, a joint task force comprising members of the forest department, Odisha police and a wildlife activist was formed to recommend suitable criminal provisions to be applied on persons involved in elephant poaching after a PIL was filed by Cuttack-based wildlife activist Gita Rout seeking amendment to the Wildlife (Protection Act), 1972 on the lines of the Wildlife (Protection) (Assam Amendment) Act 2009.
During the hearing, the HC bench requested chief conservator of forests Manoj V Nair, convenor of JTF, to find a solution to the problem. The bench asked Nair to come prepared for a detailed presentation on the comprehensive action plan on curbing elephant deaths due to poaching, electrocution and train collision.
In March this year, the HC was informed that the state government had approved the Comprehensive Action Plan including 17 long-term, 10 medium-term, and 158 short-term measures for human-elephant conflict mitigation, elephant habitat, corridor and connectivity, and wildlife health management.
