BHUBANESWAR: As the industrial renaissance has brought in rapid growth of mining activities in the State, in some parts it has also caused loss of corridor for elephants resulting in isolation of their population, inbreeding and rising man-animal conflicts.
While inbreeding can cause genetically inferior species, loss of corridor has resulted in deaths of several elephants in the Joda- Barbil area in Keonjhar district.
According to reports, more than 100 open cast iron ore mines covering over 60,000 hectares are in operation and more areas are under ‘illegal’ operation within Keonjhar Forest Division.
The deaths are caused due to loss of corridor or migration path among pachyderms of Baitarani Elephant Reserve in Keonjhar and Dalma Wildlife Sanctuary under Singhbhum Elephant Reserve in West Singhbhum forests in Jharkhand.
Migration or movement of elephants through corridors is needed as the large herbivores cannot be confined to one area and if they do, then the entire forest will be lost. So naturally, they shift places so that by the time they are back, the old habitat will be covered with new vegetation for consumption, explains wildlife expert and adviser to Orissa Government on elephant conservation, Kisor Chaudhuri.
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