Jumbo reserves: Orissa govt dumps plan

Sampad Mahapatra, Jay Mazoomdaar, NDTV.com August 28, 2007 Two years ago, the Orissa government was all for elephants. Now, two years after the Centre cleared their proposals for two new elephant reserves, the state government has mysteriously changed its mind. Not surprisingly, the Centre is puzzled. The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests has written to the state: ''The sudden decision of the state government to not notify the elephant reserve is puzzling. In case the state governments feels that any further rationalization of boundaries of the proposed elephant reserve is required, the Centre can consider the same but to drop the declaration of elephant reserve altogether may not be appropriate.'' The proposed reserves would have provided a safer habitat for nearly 700 elephants. But it seems the Orissa government's priorities have changed. To read the full story click on the blog title