Centre seeks report on death of elephants on railway tracks in Assam's Hojai: Bhupender Yadav
Gosaba (PTI): Union Minister Bhupender Yadav on Sunday said the Centre has sought a report on the death of elephants in a collision between a train and a herd of tuskers in Assam’s Hojai district a day ago.
Yadav, the environment, forest and climate change minister, also said all states have been asked to monitor elephant movement along the railway tracks.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting on Project Elephant and the National Tiger Conservation Authority in the Sundarbans of West Bengal, Yadav said, "The railway authorities have been directed to coordinate with the forest departments of states on elephant movement along the tracks. A report on elephant deaths in Assam has been sought."
He said coordination between train drivers and forest officials is essential.
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Eight elephants were killed after a herd of jumbos was hit by the Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express in Assam's Hojai district early on Saturday. Five coaches and the train's engine also derailed.
"The district magistrates have also been asked to keep forest departments updated on elephant movement along highways," the minister said.
"A team was formed with the DRM Railways, DFO and local people as stakeholders in the area concerned in Assam and in every such locality where elephant habitat and train lines exist," Yadav said.
He said there are 1,100 elephant accident zones or hotspots in the country, where such preventive measures were being taken.
The minister said Rs 112 crore has been allotted for the Sundarbans for the Tiger project in West Bengal and Rs 344 crore for elephants in the last five years.
"But these funds remained mostly unutilised, he alleged.
While the Sunderbans attracts 9.5 lakh tourists annually, the Ranthambore tiger reserve witnesses Rs 18-19 lakh.
"Such a beautiful zone of 2,500 sq km area with rich biodiversity, over 250 bird species, apart from big cats, deer and crocodile, hasn't been projected properly. There must be a balance between ecological concerns and development. This should be looked into by the state," he said.
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RR beat RCB by six wickets in IPL
Guwahati (PTI): Blistering fifties by Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Dhruv Jurel powered Rajasthan Royals to a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their IPL match here on Friday.
Sent in to bat, RCB rode on a fighting half-century by skipper Rajat Patidar (63) to post 201 for 8.
Virat Kohli (32), Romario Shepherd (22) and Venkatesh Iyer (29) also chipped in with useful contributions.
In reply, Sooryavanshi (78 off 26 balls) and Dhruv Jurel (81 not out off 43 balls) shared a 37-ball 108-run partnership for the second wicket to set the platform. Krunal Pandya (2/30) tried to bring them back with back-to-back wickets.
But Jurel, in the company of Ravindra Jadeja (24), completed the task with another 68-run stand, with two overs to spare.
For RR, Jofra Archer (2/33), Ravi Bishnoi (2/32) and Brijesh Sharma (2/37) took two wickets.
Brief scores:
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: 201 for 8 in 20 overs (Rajat Patidar 63; Jofra Archer 2/33, Ravi Bishnoi 2/32, Brijesh Sharma 2/37).
Rajasthan Royals: 202 for 4 in 18 overs (Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 78, Dhruv Jurel 80 not out; Krunal Pandya 2/30, Josh Hazlewood 2/44).
