EPS red flags draft elephant corridor plan

CHENNAI: Leader of Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami on Friday came down heavily on the DMK government for publishing an “ill-conceived” draft elephant corridor plan recently that would jeopardise the life and livelihood of the tribal population in the state, particularly in Gudalur in The Nilgiris district.

Palaniswami, in a statement, questioned the authenticity of the list of elephant corridors identified by the panel under the Chief Conservator of Forest of Tamil Nadu and red flagged the quality of study.

He also questioned the state government’s sly move to publish the draft elephant corridor list when the Model Code of Conduct is in force and wondered why the DMK government is showing so much interest in doubling the number of elephant corridors that is against the interest of the tribal community.

He demanded the state to publish a detailed report in Tamil and publish the same in the regional newspapers before announcing the policy on elephant corridors.

“There is no sign of a proper study on elephants and its corridor,” he said and recollected that the study done in the year 2000 identified as many as 25 elephant corridors in the state, while yet another study listed 18 elephant corridors. According to a recent study carried out in the year 2023, there were 20 elephant corridors in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Of them, 15 are in TN. However, the panel constituted by the TN government published a draft on April 29, stating that there were 42 elephant corridors and sought suggestions from the public and stakeholders before May 5. However, no clear communication has been published through media to the public regarding the draft elephant corridor and timeframe to submit their suggestions, he added.

“We in the AIADMK are firm on protecting the forest and wildlife. But, We will not accept the attempt to uproot the tribals, who have been protecting the forest and making their living for generations, from their habitats,” Palaniswami said.