Elephant slows highway traffic

TT, Jalpaiguri, Feb. 26: A wild elephant that has been standing near Khunia More along NH31 since morning disrupted traffic in the area as hundreds of people stopped to take photos of the animal.

Foresters suspect the makna (a male elephant without tusks) is unwell as despite repeated attempts by the Khunia wildlife squad to send it in to the forest, the animal has not moved.

The area, around 40km from here, is close to Gorumara National Park and Chapramari Wildlife Sanctuary.

"Around 6am, the elephant came out of the forest and positioned itself just beside the highway. People stopped to see the wild elephant and many started taking pictures using flash in their cell phone cameras. But the elephant neither turned aggressive nor retreated to the forests," a forester said.

A forest officer said those who stopped on the road were asked not to disturb the animal. "We asked people to maintain safe distance so that there was no danger in case the elephant turned aggressive. Forest guards were posted to monitor the situation. Drivers were asked to drive at a low speed while crossing the area," he said.

The foresters burst crackers to steer the elephant to the wild but it did not budge an inch.

"We have been chased by elephants while taking photos. But today, we clicked several photos as the elephant stood still," said Subrata Das, a tourist from Calcutta who is visiting the Dooars with his family.

The elephant's behaviour has led to a suspicion that it was unwell.

"There is a chance that the elephant is ill and it can't move due to an injury or weakness. We are planning to examine it closely. If it is found to be ill, we will administer treatment otherwise, the animal would be sent back to the forest," a forest officer said.

A couple of weeks ago, a gaur had stood on the railway tracks near Chapramari level- crossing, around 5km from Khunia More, leading to regulated train movement.

In another incident, two gaurs raided Karbala Tea Estate near Banarhat today.

Local people said the animals had strayed out of the nearby Reti forest. Foresters from Binnaguri and Banarhat wildlife squads tried to send the animals back. While one gaur went back to the forest, the other stayed in the garden halting work for three-four hours.

"After around four hours, we could steer it to the forest," Jaladhar Roy, the range officer of Binnaguri, said.