Solar-tech to mitigate human-wildlife conflict in Katarniaghat
PILIBHIT: In a bid to curb rising human-wildlife conflicts, villages bordering the Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary (KGWLS) — part of the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve — will soon be equipped with solar-powered street lights with an aim to deter elephants, tigers and leopards from straying into human settlements.
Divisional forest officer Apoorv Dixit said the project will be launched by Signify (formerly Philips Lighting) under its corporate social responsibility (CSR) model. “A letter of intent was presented for installing 1,500 street lights to UP forest minister Dr Arun Kumar Saxena on June 15 and now it has been forwarded to sanctuary authorities for implementing the plan on ground zero,” he said.
Field director of DTR, H Rajamohan, said the absence of electrification on streets and houses and erratic power supply has emerged as a major crisis in these villages. “Unlike Pilibhit tiger reserve, over 60 villages lie within 5km of the sanctuary’s core peripheries, while 12 are located inside it. The solar lighting project is expected to ease the crisis to some extent,” he said.
Divisional forest officer Apoorv Dixit said the project will be launched by Signify (formerly Philips Lighting) under its corporate social responsibility (CSR) model. “A letter of intent was presented for installing 1,500 street lights to UP forest minister Dr Arun Kumar Saxena on June 15 and now it has been forwarded to sanctuary authorities for implementing the plan on ground zero,” he said.
Field director of DTR, H Rajamohan, said the absence of electrification on streets and houses and erratic power supply has emerged as a major crisis in these villages. “Unlike Pilibhit tiger reserve, over 60 villages lie within 5km of the sanctuary’s core peripheries, while 12 are located inside it. The solar lighting project is expected to ease the crisis to some extent,” he said.
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