Jalpaiguri: Forest officials boost safety measures for Durga Puja

The Jalpaiguri Forest and Wildlife division will conduct surveillance at various locations in the vicinity of the forest during the Puja celebrations. Additionally, they will enforce restrictions on recording videos and creating reels while parking vehicles on the national highway in the jungle area.

The Forest department has expressed concern that residents who visit the area during the Puja days may return home late at night after worshiping the idols, increasing the risk of wildlife encounters in the forested region. In order to ensure their safety, a blueprint outlining safety measures has been prepared and a meeting is scheduled for Thursday to discuss final preparations.

According to the Jalpaiguri Wildlife Division, patrolling in the forest will continue as usual. However, during the Puja festival, the department will station vehicles at eight sensitive points in the forest’s vicinity.

These points include Binnaguri, Dayna, Ramsai, Khunia, and several others.

Dwijaa Pratim Sen, the Divisional Forest Officer of Jalpaiguri Wildlife Division, said: “All department squads have already been placed on high alert. During the Puja, we will station monitoring teams at various locations and a meeting is scheduled for today to finalise our plans. It has also come to our attention that people have been capturing images and creating videos by stopping their vehicles on the national highway in Lataguri, which is in violation of wildlife laws. Any individuals caught taking pictures or creating videos will face legal consequences.”

Gorumara National Park and Chapramari Sanctuary contain several settlements in various parts of the area. Occasionally, there are incidents of elephant attacks in these regions. Just last Tuesday, a person lost his life after being attacked by an elephant in the Upper Kalabari Basti area of Nagrakata. Local residents claim that six people have died due to elephant attacks in the last month.