Jalpaiguri (West Bengal): Over the past month, North Bengal has witnessed more than 15 casualties due to elephant attacks, including the unfortunate loss of two forest guards. It has come to light that one of the guards lost his life because his firearm malfunctioned when he attempted to subdue the tusker.
The firearms issued to the guards are outdated and in deplorable condition. While the state government has pledged to provide modern weaponry, these promises remain unfulfilled, putting the lives of both the people and the guards in jeopardy.
In Alipurduar alone, seven people died in elephant attacks in the last one month. Four lives were claimed in Cooch Behar while Jalpaiguri and Siliguri recorded three and two deaths respectively. In 2016, Binay Burman, the then state forest minister had accepted a proposal to provide equipment and modern weapons to forest guards but it was never implemented. The present forest minister Jyotipriya Mallick has also repeatedly mentioned about handing over modern weapons to forest guards but nothing has been arranged till now.
Bijay Dhar, a former forest guard of Jalpaiguri district complained that the condition of forest guards is pathetic. Bureaucrats have no concern for the grassroots workers, he alleged. "The weapons that are presently used by the forest guards are outdated. Powerful lights, crackers and firearms are used to drive away wild elephants but unfortunately, there is no security for the grassroot workers who are actually involved in the process. No one has any concern about these workers who risk their lives daily," he said.
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According to a forest guard, they are not getting their transport allowances since 2019. They are still made to use the 1984-era guns and the number of guns needed in a squad is much low compared to the total requirement, he said adding that for years, there has only been fruitless talks about providing sophisticated guns.
Koustav Chowdhury, leader of Snap Foundation, a voluntary organisation for wildlife lovers, said, "Elephants venture out of forests including Alipurduar Baksa, Garumara National Park and Baikunthpur, in search of food. We have tried to support the forest guards. The forest department is working with only 40 percent staff. We have already approached the Additional Chief Forest Officer of North Bengal for increasing the strength of forest guards. Also, we pointed out the need to provide them with sophisticated weapons."
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