Special Task Force to be Deployed in Jhapa to Protect Citizens from Wild Elephants

Jhapa. A 'Special Task Force' will be deployed in the district to protect the lives and property of the general public from wild elephants.

The process of forming the 'Special Task Force' has been advanced on the instructions of the Prime Minister's Office, informed Nisha Dangi, Member of Parliament from Jhapa Constituency No. 1. "The Prime Minister's Office has already told the concerned bodies to proceed with the process on Wednesday," she said, "Now the Chief District Officer will coordinate for the deployment of the 'Special Task Force'."

Following the death of 62-year-old Padma Paudel in an elephant attack in her own courtyard in Mechinagar Municipality-4 last week, locals have been demanding that the government take immediate solution-oriented steps for the security of their lives and property.

Following the same incident, MP Dangi and National Assembly member Roshani Meche spoke in parliament demanding that the government take concrete steps to control wild elephants and protect the lives and property of citizens.

It has been planned that the 'Special Task Force' will include the Armed Police, Nepal Police, and Armed Forest Guards, and the Chief District Officer himself will oversee its deployment, informed MP Dangi. The force will be deployed in the Bahundangi area, which is considered a border entry point for elephants. Herds of 30 to 100 wild elephants are known to enter Nepal from India's Assam and West Bengal across the international border in that area.

Since it is not a wildlife sanctuary area, the process of directly deploying security personnel to control elephants is not straightforward. The Armed Police Force and Nepal Police are under the federal government, while the Armed Forest Guards are under the provincial government.

It has not yet been confirmed how many security personnel will be deployed in the 'Special Task Force'. MP Dangi stated that 50 security personnel have been requested. She said, "Since experienced and trained security personnel need to be deployed to control elephants, suggestions are being received that the 'Special Task Force' could be deployed with at least ten people initially."

Local residents are excited by the news of the 'Special Task Force' being deployed in Mechinagar. Arjun Karki, Ward Chairman of Mechinagar Municipality-4, said that the news of the Nepal government deploying security personnel for the protection of the lives and property of the general public is welcome. He suggested that trained security personnel should be deployed to control elephants.

Nilkantha Tiwari, former chairman of the then Bahundangi Village Development Committee, says that the government should move forward with a concrete action plan to prevent herds of elephants from entering from the Indian side and to assure the local residents.