If those who are supposed to guard become thieves, whom can you trust? The position of mahout (elephant handler) in the Forest Department is an important one. Even though it is a lower-level position in the hierarchy, the responsibility it carries is significant. Along with taking care of the elephants, mahouts also have the responsibility of forest conservation. Particularly, they play a crucial role in ensuring that tigers and elephants that venture near village boundaries are safely guided back to the forest with the help of tamed elephants.
In this context, two mahouts from the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve have been suspended from their jobs after it was proven that they were involved in poaching wild boars. The suspended mahouts are Mast Mast from the Doda Harave Elephant Camp in the Hunsur division of the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve, and mahout H.N. Manju and mahout J.D. Manju named Ramayya. The order for their suspension was issued by the Deputy Forest Conservator of Nagarahole, P.A. Seema.
Both accused individuals are residents of the Nagapur tribal settlement. They are alleged to have been involved in poaching wildlife along with a poacher named Manju from the nearby Neralakuppe village in Hunsur. The Sub-Divisional Forest Officer of Doda Harave Forest discovered an illegal gun at the residence of the accused mahout and seized it.
The illegal gun is said to belong to the poacher Manju. Using this gun, the three accused were hunting wildlife. The three were found to have participated in wild boar poaching near the boundaries of Doda Harave Forest. The poacher Manju has fled, and investigations are ongoing to trace him. A case has been registered against the accused under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972, and the forest authorities have stated that a charge sheet will be filed in court.
This is the first time that staff from the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve have been accused of poaching wildlife. The forest authorities have said that after investigating the accused, they plan to terminate their employment.
Also read: http://Is it ethical to disclose the identity of informants?
An article titled “Is it ethical to disclose the identity of informants?” published this morning on Kumararaita.com mentioned that some mahouts and kavadies (forest workers) in Nagarahole are regularly accused of hunting deer and other wildlife and sharing the meat with their colleagues at elephant camps. Environmentalists have demanded that an investigation be conducted into this as well, and if the allegations are found to be true, action should be taken against the culprits.
