Khata bio-corridor settlers in constant fear of wildlife
Khata bio-corridor settlers in constant fear of wildlife
Kamal Panthi, Kathmandu Post
September 6, 2023
See link
https://kathmandupost.com/province-no-5/2023/09/06/people-living-along-khata-bio-corridor-in-constant-fear-of-wildlife
for photo.
Jogipure Chaudhary, a landless squatter from ward 3 of Madhuwan
Municipality, spends his nights at a relative’s house in Dhanaura due to
fear of elephant attack.
“We can’t stay at home after dusk since the wild animals from the forests
enter the settlement,” said Chaudhary.
Last month, on August 26, a wild elephant demolished Chaudhary’s house. And
last year also a herd of elephants had torn down his home. Chaudhary and
his family members had survived as they managed to flee.
The settlement of landless people, which is near the Nepal-India border,
lies along the bio-corridor through which wild animals move to and from the
Bardiya National Park and Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary of India.
Elephants in herds pass through the settlement almost every day.
Bhandhuwa Tharu, another local, is worried about sustenance this year since
wild elephants destroyed his maize and paddy fields a few days ago.
“With the crops destroyed, I don’t know how to feed the family this year,”
said Tharu. “I heard that the government provides compensation for the
damaged crops and properties. But I have not received any compensation so
far.”
Bandhuwa owns five kattha [1 kattha is 338.63 sq metres] of land that the
government provided a few years ago. He planted maize and paddy, but the
wildlife, mainly the elephants, destroyed them. “The elephants ravage the
fields during the harvest season.”
On September 4, a herd of elephants entered a cornfield at Bhagaraiya in
Madhuwan-3 and destroyed maize planted in 10 kattha of land. According to
Laxmi Chand, a local, the herd of around 25 to 30 elephants entered the
settlement and wreaked havoc.
The residents of various settlements in Madhuwan are hugely affected due to
the recurring damage caused by wildlife.
Wild elephants destroyed the house of Ram Prasad Tharu twice last year.
“The tuskers dismantled my house last year. I took a loan and rebuilt the
house. But the elephants destroyed that too last week,” said Ram Prasad of
Madhuwan-3 who is taking shelter at Dhanaura.
According to Ram Prasad, the landless people started living near the
Nepal-India border in Madhuwan-3 in the 1990s. There are settlements at
Dhanaura, Bhagaraiya and Bipatpur areas of Madhuwan-3.
“The villagers are in abject terror of wild animals. Once it’s evening,
people cannot come out of their houses. We stay awake at night to chase
away elephants by beating drums and lighting bonfires,” said Prem Pun Magar
of Madhuwan-3.
Settlements along the Khata bio-corridor, a 24-km pathway along the shared
border of Bardiya National Park in Nepal and Katarniaghat Wildlife
Sanctuary in India, are under constant threats from the wildlife that use
the corridor.
According to Santosh Chaudhary, assistant forest officer at Khata Range
Post, wild elephants have destroyed eight houses along the corridor over
the past two months. The tuskers demolished three houses in the landless
settlement, two in Khothiyaghat of Madhuwan-3 and three other houses at
Majhara of Rajapur Municipality-10.
According to Santosh, the tuskers killed three people and destroyed 10
houses last year along the Khata bio-corridor. Besides elephants, the
bio-corridor is also frequented by rhinos, leopards and monkeys. “Tigers
and leopards enter the settlements and kill domesticated animals while
monkeys destroy crops, mainly maize,” said Dhana Bahadur Khatri of
Bhagaraiya in Madhuwan-3.
The Postal Highway connects Gulariya, the district headquarters of Bardiya,
with the Rajapur area across the Karnali River through the Khata
bio-corridor. One has to cross a dense forest about two kilometres long
while travelling along the Gulariya-Rajapur section. Wild animals like
elephants, tigers, leopards and rhinos attack people while crossing the
road section.
“Wild animals often move to and from Bardiya National Park and Katarniaghat
Wildlife Sanctuary through the Gulariya-Rajapur road section. Travellers
should be cautious while passing through the road through the forest,” said
Bhadai Tharu, a conservationist based in Bardiya.
Conservationists and people’s representatives are worried about the
increasing incidents of human-animal conflict in the area. “The authorities
should provide compensation for the damage caused by wildlife. Also, the
government should develop programmes to engage the locals in
income-generating activities, so that they don’t have to rely on forest
resources for livelihood. This would greatly minimise human-animal
conflict,” said Min Thapa, the ward chairman of Madhuwan-1.
The forest area in the Khata bio-corridor covers around 202 square
kilometres. According to the Khata Forest Coordination Committee, there are
a total of 4,802 households in various settlements along the corridor.
Security personnel and conservation officials urge people not to venture
into the forest after dusk.
“We have imposed a ban on entering the forest areas after dusk. Besides
saving crops and other properties, people have a tough time protecting
themselves from wild animals,” said Bam Bahadur Kunwar, Armed Police Force
inspector at the Border Outpost in Bhagaraiya.
According to the data of the Division Forest Office, in the past three
years, 12 people have lost their lives in tiger attacks along the Khata
corridor alone. In the district, at least 27 people have died in various
wildlife attacks during the same time period.