KNP elephants fed in Majuli

A few enthusiastic people showed their keen love and responsibility towards wild animals in Majuli. The people of the Salmora area, especially the youths fed a big herd of wild hungry elephants sheltered at their nearby sandbars of the flooded Brahmaputra. The pachyderms comprising not less than fifty had been trying for about two weeks to cross the embankment and dyke in search of food and faced human prevention. On seeing the plight and listening to the cry of hunger of the elephants the people took an appreciable step to feed them up. The courageous people arranged more than hundred banana trees, leaves, jack fruits, pumpkins, three sacks of edible salt etc., to the sandbar for feeding them. They carried the fodder on machine boats and let them eat there so that the elephants could relieve of starvation. The stray elephants came from the Kaziranga National Park to upper Majuli areas in search of food during the summer and crop season like those of bygone years. The famed KNP was under food waters and the wild aminals were at stake migrating to safer places. At a time when the people of the Salmora were struggling with the problem of flood and erosion and fear psychosis of COVID 19, the act of benevolence towards the wild animals has been greatly lauded by one and all. It is advisable that the same nature loving people can think of planting of banana trees on the sandbars in the favourable season as fodders for the elephants and to avoid conflict with the human. They can take the initiative with the help of the department concerned and NGOs. It is pertinent to mention here that the Salmora area of Majuli is very famous for its age-old pottery industry and news items for large-scale erosion of the Brahmaputra.

Kulendra Nath Deka

Chamahiya Ati, Majuli.