2 Bandhavgarh reserve officials suspended after death of 10 elephants in Madhya Pradesh

Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav suspended two senior officials of the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve (BTR). This after a high-level probe identified human errors that led to the death of 10 elephants in the park on Sunday. 

The officials are BTR Director Gaurav Choudhary and the in-charge assistant conservator of the park Fateh Singh Ninama. The BTR director switched his phone off and refused to return to the office after his leave, among various other reasons, the Chief Minister told PTI.

"Although the initial report did not point to any pesticide in the elephants' food or any other, the officials found toxic substances and huge amounts of Kodo millet in all 10 elephants' stomachs," said Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. He added that the autopsy report would be prepared in two to three days.

After the incident, the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister called an emergency meeting on Friday and sent a team comprising M P forest junior minister Pradeep Ahirwar, Additional Chief Secretary Ashok Baranwal, and Head of Forest Force Aseem Shrivastava to probe the elephant deaths and submit a report. The team returned to Bhopal on Sunday.

Chief Minister Yadav also underlined the need for an elephant task force, radio tracking and a long-term plan with the help of wildlife experts to avoid a repeat of jumbo deaths and attacks on humans. "We will develop a long-term plan comprising the best practices of other states, including Karnataka, Kerala and Assam, which have huge jumbo populations. We will send our officers to these states," he said.

On October 29, four wild elephants were found dead in Sankhani and Bakeli under the Khalil range of the BTR in Umaria district. Four more died on October 30 and two on October 31. The reserve has drawn national attention following the deaths of 10 jumbos in 72 hours.