K’taka assured Omkar’s shift before Dussehra, says Rane

Panaji: Forest minister Vishwajit Rane said that the sub-adult elephant, Omkar, which strayed into Goa from Maharashtra, will be safely relocated before Dussehra.

This comes just days after Rane indicated that the Karnataka forest department’s trained elephants were unavailable due to Dussehra-related duties. However, speaking to reporters, he confirmed that Karnataka has agreed to deploy their team by Oct 2, and efforts are under way to advance the deployment to an earlier date, considering that Dussehra also falls on Oct 2 this year. “The Karnataka govt has a skilled team to tackle such matters, and they have assured us that they will help us,” Rane said.

According to Rane, a team of six trained elephants will be needed to guide Omkar out of Goa’s forests and across state borders safely. These elephants were requested from Karnataka.

To institutionalise coordination on such matters, Rane announced that Goa, Maharashtra, and Karnataka are working on a tripartite agreement to set up an elephant rescue centre. “Such an agreement is the need of the hour. It will enable us to have a cohesive system to help one another,” he said, adding that a joint meeting between the three states is expected soon.

Rane also highlighted the increasing elephant populations across central and eastern India, pointing to regions like Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Maharashtra.