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Wild elephants in South Bhutan
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Chhukha and Samtse - Tuskers
torment Samtse
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| Marauding
elephants, which have already destroyed 17 acres of maize plantations and
few acres of ginger in Sipsu gewog, Samtse, are continuing to rampage through
this southern gewog.
On
15 June 2008, elephants intruded into the renewable natural resources (RNR)
compound in Belboty and ravaged fodder trees and, on the night of June
16, damaged two temporary classrooms of Peljoring middle secondary school
(PMSS) in Peljorling village. |
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The beasts also ravaged maize growing in
a 60 decimal area of the village.
The
principal of PMSS said that this was the second time elephants had damaged
school property. Earlier in January a group of wild elephants had completely
destroyed one of the classrooms.
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| Wild elephants have become a nuisance to farmers in South Bhutan |
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wild elephants, most of the time, come to the village at night. If the
numbers are few, the farmers manage to drive them away using firecrackers.
According
to a farmer in Hangay, this year the elephants started ravaging crops a
month earlier than usual. |
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According to him, the elephants normally show
up when the maize matures. "For the past week we've been spending sleepless
nights guarding our farmland," he said.
The
deputy range officer of the forestry services in Sibsoo, Passang, said
that every night two officials are kept on duty patrolling the villages.
"So far, other than the electric wiring, we don't have any other alternative
deterrents, we just fire blanks to chase them away," he said.
The
dzongkhag has assessed the damage caused by the elephants and submitted
it to the ministry.
To
prevent the jumbos intruding, the Samtse dzongkhag administration had installed
a solar electric wire covering a total distance of around 10 km but, regardless
of it, elephants manage to trespass. The situation is worse at this time
of the year when farmers are busy with paddy transplantation work.
| Contributed
by Passang Norbu, Kuensel 2008 |
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Ministry of Agriculture
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MOA |
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