State govt. urged to set up a high-level inquiry into elephant deaths

Belagavi-based wildlife conservationist Giridhar Kulkarni has urged the State government to conduct a high-level inquiry into the death of two wild elephants in Belagavi district and to initiate legal action against officials if they are found to be guilty of negligence or of dereliction of duty.

In a letter to the State government, Mr. Kulkarni has thanked Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre for ordering a probe into the electrocution of two wild elephants on November 2 in the Nagargali Forest Range, directing the Chief Wildlife Warden to investigate the incident and determine whether there is any dereliction of duty by the department officials.

He, however, suspected that this incident is similar to an earlier one in which five tigers were being poisoned to death in Hoogyam Range in MM Hills, as an act of retaliation.

“In that case, the State government tried to fix accountability by suspending the DCF, ACF and RFO and taking action against other officers. The elephant deaths should also be taken as seriously as it was done in the earlier case. The incident underscores the urgent need for rigorous investigation and decisive action and hence, I call for the constitution of a high-level inquiry team. In this context, I submit the following petition to ensure that the inquiry is conducted rigorously and in full compliance with the binding judicial directions of the High Court,” he said.

He has said that the following urgent actions, including the constitution of a high-level inquiry committee, headed preferably by an officer of APCCF rank, to conduct a thorough investigation of the incident, verify compliance and recommend corrective and preventive measures, following the precedent set in the Hoogyam Range MM Hills tiger poisoning case.

“I request that a high-level independent inquiry team be constituted, preferably headed by an officer of APCCF rank, with a direction to personally visit Nagargali Range at the earliest for an independent site inspection and inquiry. Such an inquiry is essential to ensure an objective assessment of ground realities, verification of compliance with statutory and court-mandated duties and the initiation of immediate corrective measures wherever required,” he said.

His demands include a direction to the Chief Conservator of Forests, Belagavi Circle, and the Deputy Conservator of Forests, Belagavi Division, to furnish verified and factual compliance reports regarding the directions issued by the High Court of Karnataka in Writ Petition No 14029/2008 and Writ Petition No 16219/2024, including a detailed account of the actual ground-level actions taken, along with supporting documentary evidence, if such reports have already been submitted to the Chief Wildlife Garden and the APCCF (Project Elephant).

Immediate initiation of action against the ACF and RFO concerned pending the completion of a detailed, independent inquiry, institution of a time-bound investigation to fix responsibility for the electrocution, submission of a comprehensive compliance report on the steps taken by the Department to fully implement all High Court directions in Belagavi Division and other elephant-bearing areas and immediate coordination with the Energy Department to rectify hazardous power lines, remove illegal electrification and eliminate electrocution risks in the Nagargali landscape.

Copies of the letter have been sent to Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden Prabhash Chandra Ray, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Biswajit Mishra and the Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Project Elephant) Manoj Rajan.