BHUBANESWAR: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will provide Rs 2 crore annually for the conservation of wildlife in the state. The NHAI will release the fund to PCCF, Wildlife for Wildlife Management, the authorities said at ‘Gaj Utsav’ campaign at Jayadev Bhawan here.
Launching the campaign taken up by the state government in partnership with the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), Forest and Environment Minister Pradip Kumar Amat said the state government is taking proactive measures for the conservation of elephants and other wildlife species and has been emphasising on construction of underpasses and bridges in wildlife corridors to give free passage to wild animals.
Additional chief secretary, Forest Satyabrata Sahu said the government is working with stakeholders to strike a balance between development projects and forest and wildlife conservation. “Recently we have received clearance from the National Wildlife Board for NH expansion work near Bangriposi in Mayurbhanj. The project had remained stuck due to the presence of an elephant passage. However, the plan has been worked out to take up the NH expansion without disturbing the elephant passage in the area,” Sahu said.
WTI founder and ED Vivek Menon said, “We are partnering with Odisha’s Forest department to pass on the message of elephant corridors and the need for habitat linkages to the common man through the drive.” PCCF and HoFF Debidutta Biswal and PCCF Wildlife SK Popli also spoke. A panel discussion on ‘Sensitive and Responsible Wildlife Journalism’ was organised in which conservator of Forests Bikash Ranjan Dash, The New Indian Express resident editor Siba Mohanty, DCF Samyak Samantara, environmentalist Jayakrushna Panigrahi and WTI project manager Upasana Ganguly spoke.