State Forest Department to Revive Elephant Corridor in North Bengal

North Bengal has a number of wildlife sanctuaries and national parks, two of which are the Jaldapara National Park and the Buxa Tiger Reserve. Both of these are situated in the district of Alipurduar. Recently in a meeting in Madarihat, Alipurduar, it was decided by the state forest department that a stretch of elephant corridor would be revived between Jaldapara National Park and the Buxa Tiger Reserve to resolve the human-elephant conflicts and ease the problems between the two groups. The meeting took place in the presence of the state forest minister, Jyotipriya Mallick. 

An elephant corridor is a narrow stretch of forested land which functions as a link between elephant habitat zones. It is important for elephants to move from one part of the forest to another in search of better habitats as well as for mating purposes. This movement also ensures that the overgrowth of certain plants is avoided and allows for other types of vegetation to grow, by means of seed dispersion. Human-elephant conflicts occur when the two groups come into contact with another, often leading to negative results, such as loss of life, property, livelihoods and more. 

The elephant corridor will connect the tiger reserve and national park through the Bharnobari tea estate, which has been asked to provide some land. Plants which act as fodder for elephants will be planted alongside the corridor. It is estimated that the North Bengal region is home to close to 600 elephants. If the elephant corridor project works, the state forest department will be making more of them.