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MORE ELEPHANT DEATHS. | DEATH OF WILD ANIMALS | ANOTHER ELEPHANT SHOT DEAD. | TIMBER SMUGGLING | KOLAVIGAE ELEPHANT ELECTRICUTION.
TIMBER SMUGGLING

Hundreds of trees being plundered from the Nagarhole National Park

Incert Investigative report dated 4th June 2002 by S. Sridhar and V. Sudhiendra

INCERT Investigation team has discovered that, hundreds of trees are being plundered from the Lakshmana teertha river stretch between Konanahosahalli and Koladamoole, within the Nagarhole National Park area.

These trees have drifted along the river stretch from various forest areas including, Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary, and the logs are presently lying scattered in a three kilometer stretch, in the Koladamoole area of the National Park. Some of the trees have fallen due to the vagaries of nature and have drifted along the river.

Many timber smugglers have taken advantage of this free bounty and are surreptitiously sawing off the logs, during the nights and shifting them to the nearby villages. The investigating team found that many logs have been cut to convenient sizes by the timber smugglers.

In the villages the logs are being converted to cots, tables, dining tables, chairs etc., and these finished furniture items are shifted piecemeal, to cities like Mysore, Mandya, Bangalore and Hunsur..

Discrete enquiries revealed that most of the logs or finished furniture are sold in Mandya Moola and Chinni Chowka areas near Mandi Police Station of Mysore. Even Sandal wood logs and billets are plundered from this river stretch and they find a ready market in these two notorious places in Mysore.

The Forest Department has to take immediate steps to strengthen its vigilance and post committed watch and wards round the clock in this stretch to prevent these ongoing plundering activities.

Young Female Elephant carcass consigned to flames

On first June 2002, A young female Elephant was found dead in the Koodadha Kada area of the Matthigodu Forest range inside the Nagarhole National Park. The Forest officials conducted the postmortem and consigned the carcass to flames 3rd June 2002. The reasons for its death are not clear to us.

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A View of the felled trees.

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Another view of the floating timber.

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Trees drifting down the stream.

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The carcass of the young female elephant being burnt.