Bijnor: Each winter, as the sugarcane crop ripens, herds of elephants arrive from Corbett National Park and Amangarh Forest range at the fields in this area, destroying crops. Villagers are bracing for the animals again this time. According to forest officials, during the winter the natural diet of these elephants tends to get destroyed because of cold and fog, so they begin to move towards agricultural lands.
“There is already a large concentration of elephants on the fringes of Amangarh forest range. Our crops are at great risk now. We have a standing sugarcane crop along with maize. In the day, farmers stand guard on the fields but elephants attack at night, when it is difficult to guard against them,” said Malkeet Singh, a villager, talking to TOI.
According to DFO Salil Kumar Shukla, there are 40 elephants at present in Amangarh and 1035 at Corbett. “Besides, Rajaji National Park too has a considerable number of elephants. We do make fences to prevent their movement towards the human-inhabited areas, but these giant animals easily break them and enter the fields,” he said.
Villagers have been demanding solar fencing in the area but they allege that the forest department is doing little in this regard. According to district president of Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) Ramautar Singh, “In case of complete destruction of crops, the forest department pays only Rs 2,500 per acre as compensation, which is not even sufficient to buy the new seedsfor a fresh harvest.”
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