Two wild elephants from Rajaji come to Kalesar National Park

Shiv Kumar Sharma

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Yamunanagar, February 14

Two wild elephants have reportedly come to Kalesar National Park in Yamunanagar from Rajaji National Park, Dehradun.

Adequate food, water attract wildlife

• Recently, suspected tiger pugmarks were also found in the Chikan Fire Line area of the Kalesar National Park
• Leopards, barking deer, wild boar, sambhars and several other species of wild animals and birds are also found in the national park
• Availability of adequate food and water could be the reason behind the arrival of elephants in the national park

They can also be seen roaming on the Jagadhri-Ponta Sahib national highway near Kalesar, Araiyanwala, Faizpur and Mohamdubans villages near the national park sometimes. The availability of adequate food and water could be the reason behind the arrival of the elephants here.

There are different types of trees, including bamboo and rohinis, in the national park, which provide the elephants enough food. Bamboo and rohinis are said to be among the favourite food items of elephants.

Sunil Tanwar, Inspector, Forest and Wildlife Department, Yamunanagar, said two wild elephants had been seen roaming here for some years.

“Often, two elephants are seen here. But, they keep roaming in the forest area of Kalesar National Park, Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary and Sher Jung National Park, Simbalwada in Sirmour district of Himachal Pradesh. These national parks are connected to Rajaji National Park through a dense forest area,” said Inspector Tanwar.

He said Kalesar National Park and Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary, both situated in Yamunanagar district, had adequate water arrangement for wild animals.

“There are six ponds inside the national park and a sanctuary here. Two ponds are natural, in which rainwater is stored throughout the year. However, in the remaining four ponds, we fill water through tubewells,” said the Inspector.

He said besides ponds, there were six ‘khelis’ (small water bodies), which also provide water to the wild animals.

Leopards, barking deer, wild boar, sambhars and several other species of wild animals and birds are also found in Kalesar National Park.

According to locals, the wild elephants sometimes also entered their agriculture fields and caused harm to their crops, mainly to sugarcane crops.

As per information, the authorities of the Forest and Wildlife Department, Yamunanagar, had received information about the likely presence of a tiger in Kalesar National Park about 20 days ago. Acting on this, a team of the local Wildlife Department visited the Chikan Fire Line area of the national park and found three suspected tiger pugmarks there.