A female elephant and its calf overturned a tractor trolley on Saturday while kanwarias were camping on the Dehradun highway in the Lachhiwala range, with officials saying the animals got agitated by loud music and lights at the tent.
Forest officials said that the two animals overturned the trolley near the Manimai Temple on the Doiwala-Dehradun highway and returned to the forest before their team reached the spot. Divisional Forest Officer Neeraj Sharma said the area was off-limits for camping, but as the yatris stayed there, playing loud music, the elephant got perturbed and wanted to protect the calf.
“We keep raising awareness on the importance of conservation. Since the yatris play music on loudspeakers through the day, they did not turn it off, despite directions against it at night and near forest areas. A man was injured in the incident and taken to the hospital,” he said.
A video of the incident shows the elephant charging at the vehicles while the calf watches on. Motorcycles were also damaged, and a kanwariya got injured as yatris tried to escape from the area, seeing the elephants get agitated.
The DFO said that it has been communicated that pitching tents near forest areas is not allowed, but the crowd has increased and become difficult to manage. “There is rich wildlife in these stretches as they fall near the Rajaji National Park limits, and directions are flouted, leading to such incidents,” he said.
Police have also issued directions on the heights of DJ machines and permissible sound limits during the yatra.
Haridwar police have issued instructions in this regard and taken action against those bringing DJ systems with capacities beyond the prescribed limits, sending back over three dozen DJ systems that were found to be in violation of prescribed noise levels, size, and regulations last week.
