BJP, JMM and JVM members protest
The human-elephant conflict and a ‘meagre’ compensation that follows thereafter made on Tuesday the legislators agitated leading to disruption of the ongoing Budget Session of the Assembly for 20 minutes.
The members of BJP, JMM and JVM protested against the meagre compensation given to the affected families against the lives lost and damages done to houses and crops; a common occurrence in the areas like Barkatta, Dumri, Hazaribagh and several other parts of the State.
“It is farce that `1,200 of compensation is given for every acre of damaged paddy which costs over `9,000 to a farmer. The figures provided by the Government, regarding compensation, paid against elephant attacks are just nonsense,” said Jagannath Mahto of JMM. The concern expressed also got support from Satyanand Jha Batul of the BJP and even Speaker Shashank Shekhar Bhokta. “The worry is justified. Even the Government is admitting that compensation paid is very little,”said Bhokta.
As per the data accessed from the Forest and Environment Department total of 936 deaths have taken place till March 2013 since Jharkhand has formed in 2000. The figure comprises all the five forest divisions. Ranchi division tops the list with 369 life loss alone during the period (see table).
Replying to this, Minister Rajendra Singh assured for a high-level meeting to revisit the meagre compensation paid against the cases of elephant attacks. “You are expressing a genuine concern and we would hold a meeting within two months and revise the compensation paid. The revised compensation would be paid by retrospective effect from today,” said Singh.
The Minister also assured to admit two surviving children of a family in Dumri area whose parents were killed by a herd of wild elephants sometime ago into a residential school, providing them shelter and other necessary care.