Rs 2 crore Budipadaga elephant camp remains underutilised

Mysuru: Budipadaga elephant camp in BRT Tiger Reserve in Chamarajanagar district has remained vacant as there is no presence of tamed elephants here. Forest department spent Rs 2 crore for development of the camp, but the department failed to utilise the facility.

The department has set up all facilities to take care of tamed jumbos and provided necessary infrastructure, including the construction of houses for mahouts and kavadis besides guesthouses for tourists in Budipadaga, which falls under the Punajanur range of Biligiri Ranganathaswamy Temple (BRT) Tiger Reserve in Chamarajanagar district.

Two years ago, the state govt allocated Rs 2 crore in its budget to set up this camp after shifting the elephant camp from K Gudi.

The elephant camp was set up for conservation, rehabilitation of captive elephants. The camp also provides medical care and shelter for rescued and injured elephants in the forest besides providing training for rescued elephants to assist forest patrol, to help forest department staff in various combing operations, and to mitigate human-animal conflict.

After constructing the Budipadaga camp last year, even forest department officials shifted the Dasara elephant Gajendra from K Gudi to Budipadaga. The Dasara elephant Gajendra even camped for six months alone in Budipadaga. As Gajendra fell sick often, failing to adjust in Budipadaga elephant camp, he was shifted to Mattigodu elephant camp in Nagarahole Tiger Reserve in Kodagu district.

Now Budipadaga camp almost lies vacant without any elephants in the camp. The rest houses, other facilities also remained unutilised. The bungalow, other facilities created for tourists to boost eco-tourism promotion activities also remained without any use from the past one year.

Speaking to TOI, chief conservator of forests (Chamarajanagar circle) Malathi Priya said that the department is awaiting permission from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) to continue the camp in Budipadaga besides house the elephants.

The department wrote a letter to NTCA in this regard and a decision of continuing the camp in Budipadaga now lies with NTCA, she said.

Former member of State Wildlife Board Malleshappa said that even though the wildlife experts objected to setting up the elephant camp in Budipadaga as there was lack of drinking water and other resources to house the elephants, the forest department went ahead and set up the elephant camp in a hurry with the sole purpose to utilise the amount sanctioned by the govt.

Veterinarians also cautioned the forest department about establishment of elephant camp in Budipadaga. The environment was not congenial for protection of health of the jumbos, but the forest department went ahead, established the camp, which now lies vacant, he said.