While a committee has been set up by the government to carry out the elephant corridor project, which includes features such as protecting the habitat of elephants and identifying elephant routes, the draft report has been released recently. Tamilnadu political parties are demanding that this draft report is in English and it should be published in Tamil.
In a statement released by Union Minister of State L. Murugan, while the central government has identified 20 elephant routes in Tamil Nadu, the committee set up by the Tamil Nadu government claims to have identified 42 routes and the DMK government does not seem to be following any guidelines of the central government in the matter of environment and forest protection.
He pointed out that a survey in 2000 said there were 25 elephant routes in Tamil Nadu, then in 2017 there were 18 and in 2023 there were 20 and now there are 42.
He said that these identified elephant corridors include not only private hotels, highways, tea plantations, agricultural lands but also residential areas, and if the recommendations in this report are implemented, all these areas will come under the control of the forest department. He also narrated that the villagers of Gudalur and Masinakudy are afraid that the people who have lived here for many generations will have to leave.
Further, he questioned how ordinary people will read and understand this report published in English, and criticized the DMK government for not having the power to prepare the report of the Tamil Nadu government in Tamil and taking lessons from others about Tamil.
Also, “When the Election Conduct Rules are in force, what is the need to issue this statement in an urgent manner? The DMK government should immediately stop the plan to grab the land of innocent people without solving the doubts of the people. L. Murugan has demanded that people should be asked for their opinion directly.
