Pune-Bengaluru highway becomes death trap for wild animals | Hubballi News – Times of India

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CHITRADURGA: The Pune-Bengaluru national highway passing through Doddasiddavvanhalli in rural Chitradurga has turned into a death trap for wild animals.
A leopard was killed on the spot after it was hit by a speeding truck while crossing the national highway near Doddsiddavvanhalli in the early hours of Tuesday. After the leopard died, questions have been raised about the safety of wild animals that stray into nearby fields in search of food during the summer.
Sources said Tuesday’s leopard death was not the first. Last year, 4-5 leopards, bears and other wild animals were mowed down by speeding vehicles on this highway. However, authorities are still finding it difficult to curb this increasing death of wild animals.
Usha Rani, the range forest officer of Chitradurga, said that the national highway passing through Chitradurga to Hiriyur is turning into a death trap. This is a danger to the lives of wild animals. There are several villages on the fringe of the Jogimatti hill range and forest reserve. It is still most dangerous for wild animals on the national highway that passes through Siddavvanhalli, Ingaldal, Kurumaradi, Kennehadlu, Lambani Hatti and other villages along the Pune-Bengaluru highway from Chitradurga to Hiriyur, she added.
She said wild animals like leopards and bears would wander into nearby villages from Jogimatti hill range and its forest areas. It is a long hill range that covers several villages along the national highway. It is quite common that wild animals from this hill range wander into agricultural land in search of food.
Wild animals get killed in road accidents while crossing roads or straying to nearby fields from the hill range. As it is a national highway, vehicles usually travel at high speeds. Such vehicles are now posing a threat to the lives of leopards and other wild animals, she said.
RFO Usha Rani said that they had already requested the national highway authority to put up caution boards and other alert signs from Chitradurga to Hiriyur to the hill range.
“This will prevent the deaths of wild animals. We also submitted a detailed report to the government, forest department and the national highway authority to chalk out plans to alert drivers of vehicles to slow down their vehicles on this highway for a few kilometres to save the lives of wild animals,” she added.
“Besides this, we are also doing our regular patrolling to ensure that wild animals are not killed on the national highway. In the next couple of weeks, we will take measures to put up caution boards, signs and other works to protect wild animals,” she said.

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