Elephants shot at by Nepal police again

JALPAIGURI: Less than a month after an elephant herd was shot at on the Indo-Nepal border, yet another herd was fired at by the Nepal police on Monday evening. One of the elephants has apparently received a serious injury while six to seven others are believed to have been hit by bullets as well. This herd, along with two others, is still moving around in the border area.
It was almost 48 hours after the shooting that the Indian forest authorities came to know about it.A Nepal NGO Biodiversity Conservation Society wrote to the state forest department, informing them about the incident. Forest officials of the Kurseong division held an emergency meeting to review the situation, but senior officials were not present there.
In a near repeat of last month's incident, policemen at Jhapa in Nepal opened fire at a herd that crossed over late on Monday evening. Three herds had crossed over into Debipur and Bamondangi around the same time. Unlike on the last occasion, Indian forest authorities did not hear gunshots. It was only after the Nepal NGO informed them that they came to know about it. But none of the herds have been traced as yet. The herds are still moving around the Naxalbari-Bagdogra area of India and the Bamondangi-Debipur area across the border.
Indian NGOs have alleged that the forest department has refused to take the matter seriously or pursue it at the government level. "This is the second such incident in a month which is alarming. Several elephants were shot at the same spot two years ago. Despite repeated requests, the forest department has not taken up the matter," said Animesh Basu of Himalayan Nature and Adventure Foundation.
But across the border in Nepal, the firing has been taken seriously by NGOs. Several of them will come together for an emergency meeting called by Wildlife Conservation of Nepal on July 17. They will discuss the future of elephants in eastern Nepal at Biratnagar. Indian NGOs are expected to take part in the meet as well.
In early June, an elephant herd was fired upon by Nepal police in Jhapa. When Indian forest guards sought to prevent the firing, they too were shot at. At least four elephants were feared injured though none could be traced later.