Elephant population in Numbor Reserve Forest dwindling, says report

GOLAGHAT, April 2 ? In North Numbor Reserve Forest and Upper and Lower Doigrung Reserve Forest within Golaghat district, a census of wild elephants was undertaken by the Forest Department recently. In the forest, covering an area of 19,500 hectares, the census found only 56 wild elephants. It may be mentioned here that according to a census report in 1997, the number of wild elephants was 109. This Correspondent recently visited the entire Numbor reserve forest and met Kanchan Baruah, vice-president of Numbor Surakhya Samittee, a NGO of Golaghat, who said that the forest ranger of Juria Dalang area along with the young members of the NGO made an attempt to protect and preserve the Numbor forest wealth but the transfer of the ranger ensured that the good work done by him is left undone. Jiban Das, a naturalist and prominent botanist Dr Padmeswar Gogoi also informed this Correspondent that due to apathy and negligence of the department concerned, the resources of Numbor have dwindled each day. According to a prominent nature-lover, Arup Ballav Goswami of Golaghat, the previous government was mainly responsible for the diminishing forest resources of Numbor reserve forest as many encroachers were encouraged to encroach lands and fell trees in the reserved forest.