- NEW DELHI (Reuters)
- Rampaging elephants lured by the smell of homemade liquor have forced
nearly two dozen tribespeople to sleep in treetops in the eastern Indian
state of Orissa, an official said Friday.
-
- Some 60 elephants are running amok in the area, damaging
mud houses as they try to sniff out the alcohol, Ashok Meena, Keonjhar
District Magistrate told Reuters by telephone.
-
- ``Close to two dozen people are staying in the treetops
with family members because they are afraid of the elephants. They often
take their bedding and food (with them) during the night,'' Meena said.
-
- At least half a dozen people have died in the past 18
months in elephant attacks in the area and 200 houses have been damaged
or destroyed, he said.
-
- The elephants have been drawn to the area, 220 km (137
miles) from the state capital of Bhubaneshwar, by the smell of handia,
a local brew made out of fermented rice, he said.
-
- ``These elephants come into the villages damaging the
houses and scaring the villagers away,'' Meena said.
-
- The elephants whose natural habitats are being destroyed
by deforestation have become a growing menace for the villagers, he said.
-
- Local tribespeople as well as settlers from outside the
district have cut down large tracts of the forests where the elephants
live. A rise in the number of people around the forests has increased the
problem.
-
- ``Earlier, people were collecting twigs. But now, due
to economic pressures and lack of job opportunities, many poor tribals
are cutting trees and selling the timber,'' he said.
-
- The local administration has urged people to move out
of the so-called elephant corridor -- which cuts through three districts
of Orissa including Keonjhar -- and is meant to be a safe haven for the
animals. But it has had little success.
-
- ``People don't want to leave their villages despite our
persuasion,'' Meena said.
-
- India's elephant population numbers around 25,000 with
at least half in the southern states. Conservationists say elephants are
being forced out of jungle habitats by rapid deforestation, leading to
attacks on villages and towns.
-
- Last November, in the northeastern state of Assam, herds
of elephants wreaked havoc at an Indian Air Force base.
-
- MainPage
http://www.rense.com
-
-
-
- This
Site Served by TheHostPros
|