PROJECT TO COMBAT ELEPHANT MENACE;

Chief conservator of forests, I.B.Srivastav has said that the department has prepared a project of rupees 23 crores to combat elephant menace in the district.

Addressing a scribe at Thithimathi in south Kodagu yesterday he said that the central government is verifying the proposal and the project will be implemented after the fund is received. He said that some of the elephants in the district have taken birth inside the estates and they have not even seen forest.

Later, talking to planters who had gathered in large number with memorandums, Srivastav told that the department will catch 25 elephants each in south and north Kodagu. Solar fencing and trench formation will be taken up in phases after the release of the fund, he disclosed.

A central team will visit Kodagu, Hassan, Haveri and Chamrajnagar to take stock of the situation after the sessions.

District Conservator of forests, Sudarshan J.A., DCFO Patak and others were present.

PLANTERS COMMITTS SUICIDE;

Unable to bear the burden of debt, a planter at Shanthalli Guddalli committed suicide by consuming poison.

The incident occurred yesterday. G.M.Mandanna, aged 53 consumed poison at his house at night and succumbed. The family sources said that he was worried about bank and hand loans which he was unable to repay.

He leaves wife and three children.

KSRTC DEPOT TO KUSHALNAGAR;

Government has nodded to open a KSRTC depot at Kushalnagar, according to MLA B.A.Jivijaya.

He has said at Somwarpet that the transport minister has asked the state KSRTC to verify the feasibility and go ahead with the proposal.

B.A.Jivijaya had appealed to the transport minister about the necessity of opening a depot at Kushalnagar.

GP VP ESCAPES FROM STATION WITH HANDCUFF!

Secretary of a gram panchayath at Nidta made news yesterday as he ran off from police station with a hand cuff and later got caught by the cops.

Vice president of Nidtha Gram Panchayath, Y.J.Harish was caught by Shanivarsanthe police yesterday selling arrack sachets illegally in his estate along with one Thimma Shetty of Hittakeri. They were brought to police station.

Harish began to create ruckus in the police station and began to bang his head against the wall in protest. Police hand cuffed him to avoid any trouble. But Harish ran away from the station and escaped from the clutches of police. Howere, he was caught after hours of search and re arrested.

Cases are boked against the duo.