Temporary elephant holding area at Gucchimi village in Paravathipuram Manyam district to be ready by July end
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Visakhapatnam: Residents of the North Andhra region, especially in Vizianagaram, Parvathipuram, Manyam, and Srikakulam districts, will soon get relief from the elephant menace.
State govt is planning to deploy
Kumki elephants
to control the wild elephants that have been causing problems for the past one-and-a-half decades in the region. The elephants will be deployed once the
temporary elephant holding area
at
Gucchimi village
in Sitangaram mandal in
Paravathipuram Manyam district
is completed.The temporary elephant holding area is expected to be ready by the end of July. Govt has already started its construction at Gucchimi village, and the works are progressing rapidly. Additionally, trenching works for around 10 km are underway to control and restrict the elephants in the holding area.Currently, at least 12 tuskers are roaming in Bhamini and other areas in the district.
Around eight elephants in the Bhamini mandal area, and another four in the Thotapalli area have damaged crops there.
People of the north Andhra regions, particularly in Parvathipuram, Palakonda, and Seetampet, have been facing the elephant menace for the past one-and-a-half decades.The NDA govt in the state released Rs 5 crore funds to create the temporary elephant holding area. Once the works are completed, the wild tuskers will be brought here with the help of Kumki elephants. They will be placed in the crawls in the elephant zone for three months, and the Mahouts (the elephant handlers) will train the wild elephants.Mohammad Diwan Mydeen, chief conservator of forest, told TOI that there are three gunna (or young) elephants among the herd. Special sheds are under construction in the area with bathing pools and a drinking water facility for the elephants. This temporary elephant holding area idea has been implemented with the suggestion and recommendation of experts, including the expertise of the team from the Kaundinya elephant holding area in Chittoor.An expert on wildlife and National Wildlife Board member Dr Sukumar from Bangalore will visit the Gucchimi area along with senior officials of the AP forest department before the temporary elephant holding area is ready to drive the wild elephants to the area."We are constructing two crawls and temporary quarters for the Mahouts, who have to stay for over three months to train the wild elephants. A watchtower and a veterinary unit will monitor the health conditions of the elephants. A solar fence will also be erected along with the trench to prevent the elephants from escaping from the area. A bamboo hedge will also be arranged at a distance from the trench," the CCF of Visakhapatnam said.
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