By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 26 Feb: Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has expressed deep anguish and displeasure over the continuing incidents of human-wildlife conflict in Uttarakhand. Today, he summoned the forest officials to express his anguish.
In addition, he also directed the forest officers to stay away from foreign tours. Taking congnisance of the recent incident in Dehradun in which a ten year old boy was killed by a leopard in village Galjwadi, Dehradun Cantt, Dhami directed the officers to be on alert and remain the field.
Chief Wildlife Warden and PCCF Sameer Sinha was summoned today by the CM and directed to take strict action to prevent such incidents. He was told to be personally in the field to supervise the functioning of the department.
Orders were also issued by the CM to put on hold foreign tours by the forest officers. It may be recalled that incidents of leopard attacks and also of tiger attacks on humans are continuously rising in Uttarakhand. During the meeting chaired by the Chief Minister in this regard at his office in the Vidhan Sabha Building here, today, Principal Secretary, Forests, RK Sudhanshu, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Head of Forest Department (HOFF) Anoop Malik and Chief Wildlife Warden Sameer Sinha were among those present. Dhami directed Sinha to go into the field more often. He asked Principal Secretary RK Sudhanshu to personally monitor the cases of human-animal conflicts on a daily basis.
Dhami directed the forest officers to ensure that there was no loss of human life under any circumstances as a result of these conflicts. All the necessary steps should be taken for this. People also should be made aware of the dangers.
The Chief Minister said that the Forest Department should work in alert mode to prevent human-wildlife conflict. Chief Minister Dhami also issued instructions to send trained QRT (Quick Response Team) to the field immediately.
Later, addressing the media, Chief Wildlife Warden Sameer Sinha said that instructions had been issued to kill the leopard responsible for the death of a ten year old boy in Dehradun.
