City Desk :
Bangladesh Forest Department has decided to implement a project to conserve wild elephants and minimise elephant-human conflicts, as a number of wild mammoths have been killed in recent years.
“We have already formulated a Taka 50-crore project titled ‘Elephant Conservation Project’ and sent it to the Planning Commission,” Mollah Rezaul Karim, Conservator of Forests at Wildlife and Nature Conservation Circle, told BSS.
He said once the project gets clearance from the Planning Commission, the Forest Department will start work for implementation of the project.
According to the project details, 1,400 hectares of orchards having plants that elephants prefer to eat, 150 hectares of calamus palm garden and 250 hectares of bamboo garden will be created aiming to ensure safe habitat, breeding and food security for elephants, reports BSS.
To ensure daily water demand of the wild elephants, 15 small-big water bodies and 50 saltlicks will be built at their habitats.
About 100-kilometre solar-powered barred fencing will be set up along the ecological boundaries of vulnerable forests and villages to minimise human-elephant conflicts.
Besides, about 160-kilometre of ecological boundary bio-fencing with calamus tenuis plants and lemon and Indian jujube (boroi) trees will be established to minimise human-elephant conflicts.
Anti Depredation Squads (ADSs) will be formed at elephant reserves, while 68 new Elephant Response Teams (ERTs) will be created and the existing 127 ERTs will remain operational under the project.
Vests, shoes, shirts, pants, backpacks, caps, torchlight and gumboots will be distributed among the members of ADSs and ERTs so that they can carry out drives amid adverse environment to prevent human-elephant conflicts.
Some 90 RCC towers and 100 traditional tree towers will be set up to monitor the movement of mammoths. An elephant orphanage will be established to ensure safe shelter for baby, sick and injured elephants, forest conservators said.
In cultivating the crops like ginger, turmeric, lemon, citrus fruits, chili and pineapple that the elephants do not like, seeds and saplings will be distributed among farmers, and they will be given training and financial assistance too.
Elephant population estimation and habitat assessment survey will be carried out to identify the present state of their habitats and number.
Computer and mobile-based apps will be developed to conduct research on the mammoths.
